Brotherly love on hold for McCollum twins before Bucs-Eagles game

TAMPA — They talk and text every day, but this week the exchanges are a little more salty than saccharine.

Zyon and Tristin McCollum are identical twins, both defensive backs, with matching desires of playing in the NFL.

But nothing has prepared them for this week, when their teams will meet on “Monday Night Football.”

“The phone calls are absolutely hilarious, and I'm sure the banter around his locker room is the same as mine,” Tampa Bay Bucs cornerback Zyon McCollum said Monday. “Twins are going to reunite, and it's a big, big night for the McCollum family, for sure. Prime time. You wouldn't want any better day.”

Zyon is coming off his first NFL start, pressed into duty for Sunday's 27-17 win over the Chicago Bears with the toe injury to cornerback Carlton Davis. He played well, recording three tackles, two unassisted, while allowing only two receptions on four targets.

Tristin is a safety on the Philadelphia Eagles practice squad, having earned that opportunity with an outstanding training camp and preseason.

As soon as the Bucs beat the Bears, Tristin called his brother with a warning.

“I was a fan of Zyon's in that game they just played, but right after the Bears game was over, man, I really started jabbing at him,” Tristin said. “We're rooting for each other. But I told him, I know he put a lot of preparation into last week, but he better prepare a little bit more. I told him, ‘You'd better be ready, because we've got some dudes.'”

The Eagles are 2-0 with wins over the New England Patriots (25-20) and Minnesota Vikings (34-28). The defending NFC champions are loaded with talent on both sides of the football and led by quarterback Jalen Hurts. The defense has led the way for the Bucs (2-0) so far this season, forcing five turnovers in wins over the Vikings and Bears.

A year ago, after Tristin went undraftedbutsignedwiththeTexans, Zyon, a fifth-round pick by the Bucs, struggled as well. He was injured at a joint practice with the Tennessee Titans and missed a good portion of the preseason. When he was activated, he missed some tackles.

“I've felt like I'm on top of the world and nothing can slow me down, and then there's times when you go into those pits and you're wondering, like, everything just turns into water and it's just your grasp, it just slips right through,” Zyon said.