TAMPA, Fla. — Jamel Dean blitzed off the edge, ducking his shoulder to slip under San Francisco 49ers tight end Luke Farrell. He rounded the corner and finally got what had eluded him for five seasons — his first career sack.

His takedown of 49ers quarterback Mac Jones Sunday also resulted in a fumble that Farrell pounced on.

It wasn’t even the biggest play Dean made in the game. Just the most memorable one, according to coach Todd Bowles.

“That was Dean’s first sack that I have seen in my career, and that was probably the best play that I can say next to Mike Evans getting 1,000 yards last year that I have ever seen,” Bowles said, smiling. “That goes down in history for me.”

Perhaps, but history will also note that the game-sealing play in the Bucs’ 30-19 win was Dean’s interception of Jones’ pass to Jauan Jennings at the Tampa Bay 14-yard line with 5:43 remaining.

Dean turned 29 Wednesday, and at the end of the team’s walk-through practice he was informed he had been named NFC Defensive Player of the Week. In the win over the 49ers, Dean not only recorded the sack and his second interception of the season, he had four tackles (one for loss), a pass defensed and a forced fumble (recovered by San Francisco).

“We were just getting after them,” Dean said of the Bucs defense. “For the most part, we were telling ourselves that (quarterback) Baker (Mayfield) had been bailing us out for the past couple games, so now it’s our time to show up.”

Dean’s timing couldn’t be any better.

He’s in the final year of his contract, having agreed to reduce his salary from $12.5 million in 2025 to $4.5 million, with performance bonuses of up to $750,000. In exchange, he can become a free agent next offseason rather than in 2027. His 2026 salary was not guaranteed.

Dean’s two interceptions lead the Bucs and are tied for fifth in the NFL. They’re a welcome sign, considering he had only one over the previous two seasons.

“Dean caught another one!” Mayfield said Sunday. “Pass rush was unbelievable. Pressures were getting home. Guys making plays. I mean, that’s a really good team. They’re well, well coached. They’re always dialed in on the game plan, able to get some plays here and there, but our guys made plays when it mattered, and that’s what it’s all about.”

Of course, the biggest knock on Dean — besides his questionable hands — is his inability to stay healthy. He missed nine games over the previous two seasons and didn’t play Oct. 5 at Seattle due to a hip injury sustained a week earlier against the Eagles.

But his coverage skills have never been in question. His 90.1 grade this season is ranked first among 171 cornerbacks.

The extra work catching the football before and after practice has helped Dean improve his hands.

“I think that the main thing was catching while on the move,” he said, “so it helped me track the ball better.”

On Wednesday, Dean broke down his two big plays against the 49ers.

“On the blitz play, I realized I only had one guy to beat,” he said. “I was just trying to get to his hip so I could at least bend the corner, and once I realized Mac Jones did not get the ball out in time, I was like, ‘Oh, this is my opportunity.’”

The interception was a matter of reading the quarterback, Dean said.

“We were in a zone coverage,” he said. “At first, it was fourth-and-5, so I was thinking (first-down) sticks first. And then once the ball didn’t come out for the stick route, I just kept sinking (into coverage). I guess I was sinking at the right time, because right when he pulled the trigger, that’s when I started sinking.”

Dean’s 20.8 passer rating when targeted is the best mark in the NFL. In addition, his 42.1% completion rate tops all qualified players, according to Next Gen Stats.

How tight is Dean sticking to receivers? His 1.4 average yards of separation is tied for second with the Broncos’ Patrick Surtain, trailing only the Jets’ Sauce Gardner (1.3).

Dean also has become a student of the game. His shoulder dip was the result of watching the Bucs’ defensive linemen in pass-rush drills.

“For the most part, I would be watching them during individual warmups just to see what works,” he said. “I was like, ‘OK, I see them dipping their shoulders, so there must be something to it.’ Then I also see when (safety) Antoine (Winfield Jr.) blitzes, he dips his shoulder, too, so I was just like, ‘Let me just steal a page from their book.’”

Dean was asked if his focus on active recovery during the offseason helped him take his game to where it is now.

“I’m a goal-oriented-type person,” he said. “Once I start speaking it, like, ‘This is what I’m going to focus on,’ then I lock in and do whatever I can to make it possible, and it happens.”

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