The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have reworked guard Ali Marpet’s contract to create $4 million in cap space for the 2021 season by using two more of those magical voidable years, according to a recent tweet by Field Yates.
Now, this could simply be a way to create roster flexibility in case anyone gets hurt down the road, or it could be a sign that the Bucs are about to make a legit move right now.
For the sake of this article, let’s assume the Bucs are trying to make a move to improve their roster right now.
There are two main scenarios that people are expecting to play out, one far more realistic and likely to happen than the other.
The first and most likely of the scenarios is that they are trying to sign free agent cornerback Richard Sherman. The former Seahawk is currently unemployed, following a tumultuous offseason in which he was arrested on suspicion of burglary and domestic violence.
The Stanford graduate was released without bail, and his wife quickly came to his defense, saying to the Seattle Times “He didn’t harm anybody. My kids were not harmed in the incident. He’s a good person and this is not his character. We’re doing all right, just trying to get him out. I want people to know no one was injured.”
Despite the off-the-field issues surrounding Sherman, he has garnered interest from several NFL teams and is expected to be signed sooner rather than later. Looking at the Bucs and their willingness to take a chance on Antonio Brown despite his baggage, combined with this recent move with Marpet to free up cap space, it could all add up to a Sherman signing.
Now, speaking strictly from a football perspective, Sherman is a huge upgrade for the Bucs’ secondary. Their current cornerback combo of Carlton Davis III and Jamel Dean is not going to cut it against the Chiefs this year. This is not the Chiefs of last year, with backup tackles on both sides of the offensive line and a beat-up Patrick Mahomes. Kansas City receivers are going to get open, and Mahomes is going to find them. With Sherman on the field though?
Maybe they still get open, but with Sherman’s reputation and ability to seemingly take away a whole half of the field, Mahomes might be more hesitant to target guys based on where Sherman is lined up.
The second scenario for the Bucs seems a little more like day dreaming. This theory says the Bucs trade for Patriots cornerback Stephon Gilmore. Now, there are several factors that would prevent such a thing from happening, first of which being the Bucs giving up draft capital. With impending salary cap problems Tampa Bay will inevitably face in the coming years due to all of these voidable years being used, draft picks become even more valuable, as having quality guys on cheap rookie deals will be incredibly important.
Another problem with this potential trade is that Gilmore is being paid over $16 million in the last year of his 5-year extension that he signed with New England in 2017. The Bucs don’t have $16 million in cap space, and unless they make some major roster changes (cutting OJ Howard and Cameron Brate would be the only realistic possibilities) or if the Patriots are willing to pay a huge chunk of Gilmore’s salary, they won’t have that type of salary cap room for a very long time.
So while the Bucs are licking their wounds after a loss to the Los Angeles Rams yesterday, they might also want to start thinking about improvements to their already-stellar roster.
They might need it.
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This article appears in Sep 23-29, 2021.
