Free Agency Countdown: 26 Days — Bucs Draw Scant Interest, Respect
February 16th, 2018
GM Jason Licht has an unpopular roster
Quality NFL analysts and speculators are hardly flawless and filled with knowledge of every team, but there’s a highly disturbing trend among them.
One example of the trend is evident in this in-depth, free-agency piece by Gregg Rosenthal of NFL.com. He wrote about 31 veteran players of interest that might be cut around the league soon, which would make them available when the free agency dinner bell rings in 26 short days. But not one of them is a Buccaneer, despite Tampa Bay starters like Robert Ayers, Will Gholston, Chris Baker and Doug Martin falling into that category among players under contract for 2018.
Again, that’s just one example.
Joe constantly is reading publications and blogs across the country and there is almost zero interest in potential Bucs free agents. Yeah, Joe found chatter about a team making a play for Cameron Brate, if he’s a tendered restricted free agent, and T.J. Ward drew a little desire. But that’s about it.
Unrestricted free agents like Keith Tandy, Charles Sims, Evan Smith, Clinton McDonald, Brent Grimes, Robert McClain, Ryan Fitzpatrick and Kevin Pamphile? Crickets.
Little to no respect for your Bucs out there.
February 16th, 2018 at 9:06 am
Change the color scheme on the uniforms and get rid of the ridiculous over-sized helmet logo! Worst uniforms in the NFL! If you wear a jersey with those colors you are as dumb as you look. Trust me.
February 16th, 2018 at 9:14 am
I think we still have this season with the uniforms and then we can change them.
February 16th, 2018 at 9:18 am
Not sure about everyone else on here but I am SHOCKED I tell you….absolutely SHOCKED!
February 16th, 2018 at 9:31 am
What do you expect????? They were band-aids when we acquired them!!!!!! And now you are reporting that they are not marque free-agents!!!!!!
LOL!!!!!!!! This has been a complete roster rebuild since talk show host dominik left!!!! and the band-aids will be discarded as the draft picks fill the ranks!!!!!! Last season was the first season that the Bucs finally had depth at two positions, LB and WR, and more draft picks will continue to fill the roster!!!!!
Go Bucs!!!!!!!!!!!
February 16th, 2018 at 9:34 am
Free agents people Damn. They could play in whatever color they choose…don’t like it…don’t buy it! Some of y’all are REAL petty. Trust me
February 16th, 2018 at 9:38 am
Joe…you can’t kick the tires if there flat.
#TRENCHWARFARE
February 16th, 2018 at 9:43 am
Don’t know what you are talking about but the bucs helmet are the best in the nfl. Its not talked about simply because they have the worst uniforms
February 16th, 2018 at 9:45 am
This should be a cause for joy in our ranks. This should save us a boatload of $$$ on the group we want to res-sign.
I absolutely cut Swaggy…let TJ Ward walk…greatly improved locker room and on field talent dumping these guys.
Gholston and Ayers are on my bubble depending on who we sign in FA and UDFA as well of course as the draft.
The rest I would re-sign at the right price. I’m a big McDonald and Grimes fan and given our shortage at RB I like Sims as our 3rd down back. The others meh…Pamphile for the right price…sure…I also think we should re-sign Fitz.
February 16th, 2018 at 9:49 am
Same reason there is no interest bucs free agents same will be true with no top tier free agents having any interest in bucs. Thank you glazers
February 16th, 2018 at 10:30 am
Oh my goodness people, stop crying about the uniforms!!! Uniforms have nothing to do with winning or losing. It’s been years already. Move on with your life.
February 16th, 2018 at 10:33 am
You guys are so funny. You actually believe free agents won’t come to Tampa lol. If the money is right, they will come. If you try to play hard ball and offer the same as a contending team, you won’t. That holds true for all losing teams. Truth of the matter is we typically go after B level free agents, as opposed to the premier free agents who will command a lot of money (ahem Calais Campbell). These athletes are business men. They will follow the money. We just choose to shop at Wal Mart. But hey, at least we are in a good cap situation!
February 16th, 2018 at 10:36 am
Hate the new uniforms with a passion.
The jags are curing their abomination, the bucs should too. I still like the original scheme.
Were right back to the Culverhouse times anyhow, might as well go all the way.
February 16th, 2018 at 10:39 am
StPete, I’m with you 100% on ALL your Cuts & re-signs & keepers. I’d also keep Gholston & Ayers at least for now (our DE cupboard is BARE). I love both McDonald & Grimes & hope that both agree to return to the fold. Tend to think Bucs fans don’t really appreciate how good Charles Sims is, mostly because he’s been largely misused quite a bit in the past. Fitz is a definite keeper in my book, assuming of course that his demands aren’t unreasonable. Pamphile I can take or leave (not starter material in my book), but as you say “for the right price” … keep him.
There are also 4 more UFAs that we should re-sign, then let compete: Evan Smith, Robert McClain, Will Clarke & Patrick Murray. None should be exorbitantly expensive & all can bring something to the table in 2018, assuming they can beat out whatever competition the Bucs can muster.
February 16th, 2018 at 10:41 am
Joe,
I just went and read that nfl.com article and there isn’t a single player except for Muhammad Wilkerson that I would like for the Bucs to sign. Seriously, Brian Cushing? Jeremy Maclin? Demarco Murray? No one on that list is of much interest to anyone around the league. This is a dumb article because the only guys who ever make those types of lists either have had serious production problems or serious off-field issues. And yes, Aqib Talib can stay in Denver.
February 16th, 2018 at 10:47 am
Joe are you really crying that our 5-11 over the hill, underachieving, injury prone, useless FAs are considered “interesting”, get out of here with that BS, most of this offseason has been about moving on from most of these guys, only 2 guys worth anything are Grimes and Clinton, and those guys are old as dirt too, time to move on
February 16th, 2018 at 10:48 am
I thought this was a piece about how no self respecting player would want to come to the Dominik created dumpster fire that is the Buccaneers. Phew. Everyone knows that no one in sports media respects the Bucs. Why would anyone? But for enough money a player will prostitute himself even f to a dumpster fire,
February 16th, 2018 at 11:16 am
Yeah they’re old / washed up / suck right now so makes sense…
February 16th, 2018 at 11:35 am
More evidence that we lack talent. More talent = better coaching. Or, as I heard often as kid, “hard to squeeze water out of a rock!”
February 16th, 2018 at 12:29 pm
we have seen this trend over the last 5 + years.. it inst even a couple of years anymore.
poor draft picks, poor FA acquisitions will usually put a team into this type of scenario. And then to think about how we know that the coaches like certain players who they deem their guys.. but 31 other teams wouldn’t care about those guys.
trying to have faith in a 2018 turnaround, but its just going to be a very hard hurdle to overcome.
February 16th, 2018 at 12:34 pm
Gee, I can’t imagine why. Who wouldn’t want to sign guys from an underperforming team with one of the worst defenses ever fielded?
February 16th, 2018 at 12:39 pm
My concern is there are so many players in need of replacing that the draft and free agency simply won’t supply enough talent.
February 16th, 2018 at 12:48 pm
I am not concerned about the “Respect,” factor. I hope players (FA’s) will want to come to Tampa. Sure wouldn’t want another Bo Jackson fiasco. Or Eli Manning refusal. At least you know now how I feel about respect.
February 16th, 2018 at 12:51 pm
we cannot let clinton mcdonald walk im betting he will have some teams pining for his services same could be said for grimes but mcdonald is a great presence for this team and works his tail off never complains, is a practice beast, is a finalist for man of the year, the guy can still play maybe not as a full time starter but def a rotational guy i hope we keep him and grimes
February 16th, 2018 at 12:52 pm
i hope we keep pamphile and mcclain too dont want to see pamphile start but he is a serviceable back-up same with mcclain and he can play special teams well
February 16th, 2018 at 12:53 pm
And this is breaking news? We all know this, it’s a pitiful team with sub par talent. What team in their right mind would want our cast off garbage we don’t want? I also believe that no blue chip FA that’s looking to win a championship will want to sign here. We’ll only get the one’s that are in their 30’s looking for that last big payday, i.e. Tankass Baker, Robert Ayers, T.J.Ward, etc, etc. None of this surprises me in the slightest.
February 16th, 2018 at 1:52 pm
If I were Jason Licht, I would offer Brate a new contract. If someone decides a second is worth having him, we could lose him.
Better to lock him up. I think he’s proven himself to be consistent.
February 16th, 2018 at 1:57 pm
Example #432 as to why GM Light must be fired! BTW, I strongly agree with ditching these uniforms, burger king colors and oversized logos on the helmet. Bucs went from having one of the best uniforms to the absolute worst. If anything, change it because it already equates to losing. This time keep the Nike designer away from drugs and alcohol.
February 16th, 2018 at 2:00 pm
Charles Sims, Clinton McDonald and Brent Grimes are the only ones worth keeping, to be honest.
Robert McClain surely isn’t. He was a new face among back players, but that doesn’t make him good.
Keith Tandy, Evan Smith, and Kevin Pamphile are okay backups, but they ain’t gonna get any better, and the goal is to get the team better.
Ryan Fitzpatrick is okay for a backup, and we may be forced to re-sign him because in Winston’s looming suspension…but I personally think we can get better. Younger. Maybe someone that has a chance to earn trade value while Winston is out. Ryan Fitzpatrick certainly won’t.
February 16th, 2018 at 2:02 pm
And I only say Charles Sims is worth keeping because of his ability to catch the pass and break one. He’s a horrible runner.
Some might claim he makes the play predictable…predictable is not always a bad thing, because it can be misleading too.
February 16th, 2018 at 2:04 pm
I’m seeing a trend here. The trolls hate everything Bucs and there’s no hope for next year. I let them go their dismal way…my opinion is simply different..more in line with Pickgrin and others.
But those who seem to be paying attention tend to agree on some major areas.
First Licht has done an excellent job with the draft with the obvious mistake of Ohnono and ASJ. He’s far exceeded the draft average overall.
He’s done a good job on UFDA’s. We could be starting both Brate and Barber next year and Hump was a good find.
I think we all agree with the exception of Grimes and McDonald Licht and the Bucs have failed worst of all at FA’s. If we DO agree that our lack of FA success has been a major part of our problem then who do we really blame?
Is it REALLY Licht or is it the Glazers tight wallets? It doesn’t look good for the Glazers to have us this far under the cap. Licht does not work in a vacuum…he obviously does not have a generous budget. We really don’t know if Licht was ever permitted to even consider Calais Campbell’s contract and so tried to make a huge gamble….Swaggy pay off. As a Hawaiian Buc suggested…Swaggy is WalMart…Campbell is Saks 5th Avenue.
If Campbell had gone to a contender then perhaps TMAX wouldn’t look like such a bonehead blaming it on GMC. But Jax was predicted to go 4-12 by SI who thought giving them four wins was good and based on the return of Tom Coughlin. The Bucs were picked to win 10.
Point is Campbell went for the $$$ to another sorry team in smelly Jax…hardly the paradise of Tampa Bay.
FA’s are like the “Field of Dreams”…build it and they will come….PAY them and they will come.
February 16th, 2018 at 2:32 pm
Well said StPete. Wish I had the right to speak my mind on this site.
February 16th, 2018 at 3:10 pm
What you say JOE???
No one wants those two road graders Smith and Pamphile?
Shocking, just shocking.
February 16th, 2018 at 3:17 pm
StPeteBucsFan Says:
Is it REALLY Licht or is it the Glazers tight wallets? It doesn’t look good for the Glazers to have us this far under the cap. Licht does not work in a vacuum…
I must admit I have been a vocal critic of Licht. in hindsight perhaps some slack is in order. Most of my venom has been directed at his failure to lure an athlete of Campbells skill and talent level to Tampa. This failure has led to other disappointments and to me the biggest has been to sign a really good defensive end to put alongside GMC. Will we ever see this? I sure hope so.
Good post St.Pete, I agree.
February 16th, 2018 at 6:25 pm
Keep Brate. Don’t trade, don’t bargain. Then again?????
February 17th, 2018 at 10:51 am
Brate, Humphries, Mcdonald are must signings. Sims, Fitz, Tandy & Clarke. Oh I almost forgot sign Grimes if he wants to play another year. Our CB’s stink.
February 17th, 2018 at 1:51 pm
Licht is the CULPRIT folks. Just go back to his first statements of how he operates when he was hired. He believes in getting good value deals on free agents that are not the most expensive. On drafting he wants the BPA irregardless of needs as the best way to build teams. And what did the Glazer Boys do but open up the pocket book and he had Carte Blanche. Just look how many free agents he got to hire when he started. The problem was he was an awful chooser of talent and there were so many busts can you blame the Glazers from then not letting him blow out their wallets every year? Yes, he has found some talented players taking BPA instead of our needs. He has not filled our line needs on either sides of the ball and failed to get us a great RB when there were a lot of them in the last draft. The reason the Jaguars rose way up in just one year was their brilliance in getting as their GM the former Giant’s Coach who had beaten the Patriots in the SB by building up the needs of his lines first and added an outstanding RB, and he did exactly that again for the Jaguars taking the top RB in the draft, then building up their OL and DL and having good pass rushers like Campbell. He did just the opposite of Licht!!!
If you keep Licht you will never get out of the cellar because he will get out smarted by every other GM in our Division just like he did in 2017. He keeps fooling the Glazier Boys but their Daddy would have already sent him packing.
February 17th, 2018 at 3:31 pm
Owlykat,
Nice post. I’ve read the “Glazers are cheap” posts and I thought I might be the only one who recalled JL’ s statements and explanations on how He viewed FA and the draft. Build by drafting BPA and value shop second tier FA’ s. I’d say JL has been a man of his word.
February 18th, 2018 at 3:05 pm
Bonzi – “Charles Sims, Clinton McDonald and Brent Grimes are the only ones worth keeping”.
You have got to be joking? Lets run the numbers. 53 man roster, 23 are free agents. 11 starters on offense, 11 starters on defense. Another 22 for the back-ups with 9 in reserve (ST, LS, FGK, KO, P). So if we only keep three as Bonzi points out,the Bucs have 20 positions to fill, minus 7 draft picks equals a need for 14 FA signings. Should not be hard to do considering this team went 5-11 last year, produced only 22 sacks, gave up more passing yards than any other team and not much of a running game either. Such a pitiful, rotten Wal Mart team, with sub par talent resembling a cast off garbage dumpster fire with the worst uniforms. Uniforms have nothing to do with winning or losing? Sound familiar? Wait a minute..did this team lose four games by 3 points or less and another three games by 6 or less? By only 5 to the AFC champs? To the Bills by a FG with 0:18 left, to the Panthers on a Neutral Zone Infraction penalty with 0:45 left, to the Falcons by missing a 54 yard field goal with 0:05 left, to the Lions on a FG with 0:25 to go in a game which the Bucs gave up 5 turnovers and to the Packers in OT? This team should have been 12-4, yes, 12 and 4. Tampa’s 23 FA’s former contracts were worth approx $34,000,000.
With Tampa’s Team Cap Space @ $60,531,463, I would re-sign as many of our FA’s close to their former contacts as they can. From Brent Grimes to Javien Elliott. Then sign the best CB on the market (Morris Claiborne, Travis Carrie, Rashaan Melvin or Patrick Robinson), who will play in Tampa, along with the best DE (Chris Sims, Denico Autry or Aldon Smith) we can get. Our GM needs to hit a home run on the first four picks. Make something happen, go after the players this team needs because this cast off garbage group just maybe that 12-4 group they really are. That’s right, the one with the worst uniforms in the league, the ones who will wear their new uniforms this year. And yes, a uniform that looks “bad-arse” really can make a team turn those close games from a L to a W, because they were always there to begin with.