Keep Vincent Jackson
February 20th, 2016
Spreadsheeter makes the case
Joe is on record saying the folks who just look at Vincent Jackson’s salary and games played and determine he should be jettisoned have no earthly idea what they are typing, and clearly don’t follow the Bucs, thus should be working at a corner dry cleaner.
There is no question, no doubt, there was a huge difference in the Bucs’ offense when Jackson was injured and off the field last season. The Bucs didn’t have the depth to cover for Jackson (the difference between Donteea Dye and Jackson? Joe saw such a wide gap when he visited the Grand Canyon last summer).
Finally, Joe read some common sense national analysis. This comes from Bill Barnwell of BSPN (of all places) who believes Jackson remains valuable, too much to let walk away for no good reason.
Don’t cut Vincent Jackson. Likewise, the same cap-space argument is there for Tampa’s veteran wideout. While Jackson appears to be on the downside of his career at 33, the Buccaneers have a ton of cap room and no obvious replacement on their roster. Jackson is overpaid with a cap hit of $12.2 million, but while Tampa would save $9.8 million by releasing the former Chargers star, it would only open up a starting job for somebody like Donteea Dye or Louis Murphy. The Bucs are better off finding a receiver in this year’s draft and letting him work his way into the lineup before moving on from Jackson.
Well, Joe will not equate Louis Murphy with Dye. Under Dirk Koetter, Murphy showed is (was?) a valuable No. 3 receiver. Surely a guy who can contribute.
Dye? He has “Calgary Stampeders” written all over him.
Do the Bucs need to upgrade their receiver corps? Absolutely. Getting rid of Jackson is not the way to go about it.
February 20th, 2016 at 9:08 am
Go get Travis Benjamin out of cleveland and draft Tyler Boydd in the second round. Future issue solved.
February 20th, 2016 at 9:23 am
I’ve been screaming T.Benjamin since day 1! It’s crazy to think one guy can change the whole dynamics of a offense but a speedster like Benji can.Not only can he stretch the field but When they try to stop the run (hopefully #22) and put 8 or 9 men in the box u hit em over the top. This team hasn’t had a deep threat since JOEY GALLOWAY!!! And T.Benjamin could solve the KR game as well along with K.Bell.
February 20th, 2016 at 9:32 am
I agree with that analyst. Jackson’s value to the team is far more than just from the standpoint of his on field production, he also adds value to the team with his leadership, work ethic, professionalism and his work in the community. Not to mention he’ll probably be appreciative of the team not asking him to take a cut during the final year of his contract and may be more willing to resign as a #3 or 4 WR next season.
February 20th, 2016 at 9:46 am
Yea 86 one word decribes Benji”exsplosive”.
February 20th, 2016 at 10:11 am
they definitely need to keep jackson that being said they need to bring in sanu or kearse so jameis has some experience to throw to when jackson misses some games so they don’t have to rely on projects like humphries and bell. I like both but don’t want to have to rely on them. murphy is irrelevant.
February 20th, 2016 at 10:31 am
VJ probably has 2 good years left in him at the most. One more nagging injury though, and this upcoming season could be his last. I don’t blame him or any other NFL player for wanting their full salaries and not wanting to take salary cuts. This is a tough league. You take what you can get..for as long as you can get it.
February 20th, 2016 at 10:37 am
Just like Tony Gonzales, keep him as long as he wants to stay. He has value on and off the field. I love the guy.
February 20th, 2016 at 10:49 am
Dye? He has “Calgary Stampeders” written all over him.
LMFAO!!
February 20th, 2016 at 10:57 am
Sign WR Jermaine Kearse
Sign WR Marvin Jones
Sign DE Olivier Vernon
Sign SS Eric Berry
Sign DE Jason Pierre-Paul if can buy low due to injury
Let the backups battle it out. Kearse and Jones are known for great hands and great routes, and are consistent.
Biggest investments would be in Vernon and Paul. Paul is a gamble, so might get a slight discount there.
Berry has been battling cancer. He’s won that battle and is back. He’ll come cheap, and is a gamble, but might pay off big.
February 20th, 2016 at 11:05 am
Eric Barry a gamble? The same Eric Barry that made the Pro Bowl and was a monster in 2015. I would love be to have him, yes. Two things he won’t be is cheap or a gamble…
February 20th, 2016 at 11:18 am
I would love to see the Bucs and Vincent Jackson agree to a cap friendly extension and let him finish his career in Tampa. Besides clearly being a quality individual, he has been a pro every year with Tampa and Mike Evans NEEDS him. Give him another 1-2 years…. He’s probably been the best free agent pick up since Jon Gruden was here!
February 20th, 2016 at 11:44 am
Bucsblud Says
“Eric Barry a gamble?”
The Eric Berry who just had a fight with Cancer. His health is what makes him a risk.
February 20th, 2016 at 11:54 am
Well yeah. We have to sign or at peast have a plan in place to replace jackson before we cut him. To assume we wouldnt replace jackson some how is idiotic. Of course we would replace jackson. Best case scenario for me is that we replace jackson this year, but keep him on the roster as a #3 or 4 if we decide to really bulk up the wr corps.
February 20th, 2016 at 11:56 am
Anyone can get cancer. Every person is a risk.
February 20th, 2016 at 3:48 pm
This shouldn’t even be a discussion, he’s coming back. Offense looks completely different without him.
February 20th, 2016 at 6:36 pm
Not only do they need jackson….but depth at the position. It will take time but with jason licht and his staff in house depth will not be an issue in a couple seasons.
February 20th, 2016 at 10:07 pm
I hope we keep VJax until he retires!! He’s one of the true gems on our team.
February 20th, 2016 at 11:00 pm
Dudes!!! What did you miss a few weeks ago when J Light said VJax will be back at full salary? Why is this even being considered? Joeb … Dude, guess this is really trash season. Why even post this? I give up on this blog. Gingham Irene!!!!
February 21st, 2016 at 7:03 am
Eric Berry, perhaps the best safety in football will come cheap? And do you really think KC will let him get away? What kind of drugs are you on guy
February 21st, 2016 at 7:24 am
No reason to cut him or even restructure unless they are going to spend big money n get to the cap. Vincents a big time pro. And I’ve been screaming for Travis Benjamin too. We need the top taken off. Spend more money bucs don’t go cutting good players to save it.
February 21st, 2016 at 9:28 am
V-JAX might be the best FA signing this decade. Last year was the first time he was out due to injury in a bucs uni. He has been Mr reliable. But with these new rules having defenders go low has knee injurys rising and unfortunately Jax was a casualty. Sucks to see him get old but we gotta start finding his replacement asap. U HAVE to surround J-Bo with the artillery he needs. He is the most important thing to this franchise and in order to see him reach his potential. Sign Travis Benjamin!!!
February 22nd, 2016 at 9:29 am
Sorry Bonzai but there’s no way pro bowl safety E.Berry will come cheap. Maybe YOU should do your research. and Thats if KC doesn’t franchise him. Just because he battled with cancer doesn’t mean his value dropped. And he showed his play didn’t either. He will command top dollar on the market if he makes it there.. U can take that to the bank. With all that said I would LOVE to see Berry in pewter & red but I doubt Licht will over pay for his services unfortunately.