JPP Update
July 25th, 2019
New information.
UPDATED 10:14 a.m. – It seems there is new news of when Bucs lone sackmeister Jason Pierre-Paul may return to the Bucs roster.
If he returns.
Per Jenna Laine of ESPN, the earliest JPP can return to the Bucs would be November. As we all know, shortly after the draft, JPP was involved in a one-car crash in South Florida where he fractured his neck. In June, Bucco Bruce Arians suggested a Dec. 1 return.
Per several of his Instagram posts earlier this month, JPP was still in a neck brace. As Joe has stated, Joe highly doubts JPP is pounding weights at a gym or training facility in a neck brace.
Yes, the most important question for Bucs fans about JPP is when he could be ready. A close second-most important question would be when can JPP get in game shape. If he hasn’t worked out for months, then it’s going to take a while. JPP isn’t 20-years old any longer.
Of course, if JPP is only going to be available for a handful of games, the third question concerning JPP is if the Bucs will cut him?
To keep him, the Bucs basically are rolling the dice that they will be within arm’s length of a playoff berth chase, and that JPP can be effective when/if he returns late in the season.
July 25th, 2019 at 10:09 am
Good thing we got rid of McCoy.
July 25th, 2019 at 10:12 am
Why is it I feel that Backstabbin’ Jason Licht is going to make the wrong decision in this situation? There are a lot of fools out there that think you can just throw JPP out there in November without any experience with the *new* playbook, new play calling, new teammates, no training camp, no practice, ect…. Football is not so easy where you can throw a talented guy out there and just expect him to do his thang and ball out.
He should be cut. It’s not personal.
July 25th, 2019 at 10:22 am
If JPP was currently at this time a free agent would we sign him for $14 mil… no. So we should cut him and spread that money around. He may play again but the bucs need help right away.
July 25th, 2019 at 10:24 am
Not only should he be cut as Rome suggested, but let him keep half his 14.9 million salary that was “guaranteed” to him before the accident as a show of good faith for potential free agents in the future. Take the 7 million in cape space and save it for next year.
July 25th, 2019 at 10:25 am
Great player but he needs to go. He can’t help while setting on the sidelines. Bill Parcells once said, ” Your best ability is you availability”. If he is not available why keep him? He may never play again. His hand and now his neck?ALL his problems are self inflicted. Cut him, save the money for another free agent or for next year. The Bucs won’t make the playoffs this season. Save the money and move on!!!
July 25th, 2019 at 10:25 am
@joe… why would they not cut him now? Seems like he was going to be gone after this season but now, we can’t expect anything from him.
July 25th, 2019 at 10:25 am
If he cant contribute and the Bucs are desperate for pass rushers and in cap hell…. WHAT THE HELL ARE WE WAITING FOR? There is no way in hell the Bucs can compete without a pass rush. We wont be relevant by the time he could potentially return. Whats Lights thought process? Save the money by cutting him and apply it to another player that can help or Light wont be around to see if JPP can return next year… in his 30s… from a neck injury.
July 25th, 2019 at 10:35 am
Agree with the above posts. Money could be better spent on RG and DE.
July 25th, 2019 at 10:37 am
Mike,
My belief is that JPP is on active/NFI so it gives the #Bucs most flexibility, there is literally zero benefit to cutting him now unless a RG/OL or other position is out there that the Bucs absolutely have to have now. IMO, he’ll likely be reevaluated at camp end and if Licht/Arians are not satisfied, they can release him and then have 7.4 million (if they don’t void initial guarantee) to sign a OL/RG camp cap-casualty. If they void the initial guarantee, depending on specific contract language, they could have up to 14.9 million to sign someone at RG, possibly work out a trade?
July 25th, 2019 at 10:44 am
Good comments. He does seem to be too costly for this team now.
July 25th, 2019 at 10:46 am
JPP is a great asset but strictly from a business standpoint, it is better to cut our ties with him. Not much has been said, but this could be an end of career injury. There is no guarantees he’ll ever recover to play the game. Best to move on and do something with the extra money.
July 25th, 2019 at 10:50 am
@Wright… good stuff… Thanks!
July 25th, 2019 at 10:52 am
Love JPP…..but this is a no-brainer……cut him….spend the $7mil on another player or 2…..we still have time….
He is essentially lost for the year & may not be worth it next year…..
It’s unfortunate but simply business….
July 25th, 2019 at 10:55 am
November? Perfect timing for when the real football season starts.
https://www.joebucsfan.com/2014/11/football-doesnt-really-begin-until-november/
July 25th, 2019 at 11:04 am
So it’s gone from “out for the season” to could be back as early as November. Riiigggghhhtt. Instagram photos??? You folks fall for anything. See you week 1 Big Fella.
July 25th, 2019 at 11:07 am
Joe can confirm maybe, but JPP is a 14 million cap number now. The Bucs have an option to reduce it to 7 because of the injury but at this point have not. If the Bucs flat out cut him it will free up 14 million. Is that correct Joe?
July 25th, 2019 at 11:07 am
If money is needed to swing a trade or sign a good free agent via trade that could start immediately it would be smart to cut but not before some deal has been worked out.
July 25th, 2019 at 11:08 am
I agree with TBBF’s bottom line but for a different reason.
As the blog snowflake I simply do not want to hold my breath everytime JPP makes a tackle.
In another life when I covered ETSU football they hosted The Citadel in the Mini Dome. I was there when Marc Buoniconti (Nick’s son) playing LB for Citadel made a tackle and NEVER got up again.
I will NEVER forget the atmosphere in the Dome. It almost seemed pointless to even finish a game after that. A guys life changed forever by a game. Read an article in the Miami paper though where Buoniconti claims the injury saved his life from a Miami party lifestyle that was killing him.
JPP….like you far too much to ever see you stretched on the turf like Buoniconti.
July 25th, 2019 at 11:09 am
If we cut JPP and Beau Allen who doesnt even fit as a DE we may be able to pursue Clowney?
July 25th, 2019 at 11:11 am
Trust me Im the best GM this towns ever had… In Maddens lol.
July 25th, 2019 at 11:14 am
Good to know all this now. If the Bucs’ record stinks again this year, they will probably go full-on rebuild next year anyway, and JPP would likely not be brought back. Putting him on IR in any capacity still counts against the salary cap now with so many needs. Counting on one guy to come back from such an injury, so late, and hoping that somehow puts them over the top for playoffs is neither fair nor realistic. So….
Cut him now and sign OL, DL, and RB that may come available. If he was coming back early October, harder decision. This one is a no brainer. Sucks, to lose a 10+ sack guy this way…and we know how to blame for being so tight on money with so many needs? JL.
July 25th, 2019 at 11:25 am
Is this new news? I thought we knew this within a week after his injury went public. They said his first evaluation will be November to see the status of where hes at.
July 25th, 2019 at 11:37 am
For Christs sakes can we cut this out? I have read this stuff day in and day out since this started. JPP is ONE SINGLE DAMN PLAYER! Cut him and if he wants to play for us he will! IF NOT HE WONT! JOE This is getting old! For Christs sake we have had to read (ENDURE) all this BS about McCoy)We keep taking about building a new culture and new attitude. Doesn’t it start with us? Just saying. Time to move on. We appreciate JPP and what he did for the SINGLE YEAR he was here. Develop the NEXT JPP!
July 25th, 2019 at 11:38 am
Only time will answer this riddle so I will just enjoy the start of camp.
July 25th, 2019 at 11:41 am
Why cut him!!!! He is put on the non-football injury list. He doesn’t play he won’t get paid. He won’t count towards the cap. Then in 2020 we still have him under contract for 12 million, a great price for a pass rusher.
July 25th, 2019 at 11:41 am
I told you so.
July 25th, 2019 at 11:43 am
Remember Beckwith. Car accident, he was put on the non-football injury list and he didn’t count against the cap.
July 25th, 2019 at 11:44 am
I’m not buying what espn is selling.
July 25th, 2019 at 11:44 am
It’s win now at all costs for Jason Licht this year much like win at all costs last year for Dirk Koetter. Someone in the organization needs to think this through for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers general good and think more long term as to whether to keep JPP or release him now.
July 25th, 2019 at 11:45 am
Keep him!
He earned it!
Best season by a Buc lineman since Michael Bennett!
July 25th, 2019 at 11:47 am
Morgus the Magnificent Says:
July 25th, 2019 at 10:09 am
Good thing we got rid of McCoy.
Getting rid of McCoy was greatest thing to happen to bucs since winning super bowl and getting rid of Dungy the ignorant one dimensional clown…. top 3 moment in bucs history was riding themselves of cancer93 not quit as important as running Dungy the clown though
July 25th, 2019 at 11:50 am
cut him…..
use the money for OL and DUKE….
im surprised licht hasnt signed him to an extension already….
GO BUCS!!!!!
July 25th, 2019 at 12:04 pm
Get rid of him now. Think about it: he was driving a luxury sports car fast as hell on I-95 in South Florida. I know that does not sound that bad but it’s a manual transmission and he only has two fingers to shift with. The idiot continues to make bad decisions. Seems like we attract those types…. JW
July 25th, 2019 at 12:06 pm
It’s so good to have tmaxipad back in the clown tank.
July 25th, 2019 at 12:07 pm
Arians answered the one Joe Dec.1
July 25th, 2019 at 12:10 pm
Nothing good happens enroute to those early morning firework sales….. cut the dumbarse
July 25th, 2019 at 12:19 pm
Shaq Barret, Noah Spence, Carl Nassib and his clone Anthony Nelson are going to take full advantage of their extra reps in JPP’s absence. Each of them is going to have 5-8 sacks this year I’d say.
July 25th, 2019 at 12:45 pm
lmao clodhopper
July 25th, 2019 at 1:10 pm
I knew a girl that was in a neck brace for all 4 years of high school after breaking her neck.
July 25th, 2019 at 1:15 pm
Not sure that’s NEW… Estimate has always been November.
July 25th, 2019 at 1:17 pm
Keep JPP! He might not be in top shape by November but he will be great in the playoffs this year to help lead us to some playoff wins! He also overcomes adversity very well and is a great mentor for our younger pass rushers!
July 25th, 2019 at 1:35 pm
Man..My poor Bucs. I betcha a paycheck Bellacheat would have had JPP gone..yesteryear! Not us, We been losin so much, we don’t know how to manage
with an iron fist. Just about every fan knows When and if JPP returns, he will do so at the perhaps 75% level and then only for a few games..then back on IR again. Yep..Its the. Easy Money Sweezy nightmare all over again. Don’t blame JPP for suckin’em dry though. Me and you..would do the same thing to a ..Good thing.
July 25th, 2019 at 2:36 pm
BA FAN Says:
July 25th, 2019 at 1:17 pm
Keep JPP! He might not be in top shape by November but he will be great in the playoffs this year to help lead us to some playoff wins! He also overcomes adversity very well and is a great mentor for our younger pass rushers!
be careful pal they BAKER ACT people for making delusional statements. Joe has a better shot for a three way with Gisele and Melania than bucs making playoffs and we all know Joe does not have enough cash to land a Gisele and Melania 3 way…
calling a guy who plays with fireworks (unsuccessfully) and is not mature enough to drive reasonably a mentor to the young, is one of the funniest things I have read here in a long, long time. Next you are going to say Charles Manson was just misunderstood… you must be related to elf master bonzi…. this is almost as dumb as something he’d write
July 25th, 2019 at 3:52 pm
Just a reminder, because this was a non-football related injury during the offseason, the Bucs do NOT have to pay him for the games missed.
July 25th, 2019 at 5:23 pm
I don’t expect him to ever suit up as a buccaneer again.
July 25th, 2019 at 5:42 pm
AlabamaBucsFan … Thank you Bama. Too many ‘fans’ get emotional about money that isn’t even theirs. In a nutshell, here’s why we don’t need to cut JPP (who’s currently on the Active/NFI list (along with QB Nick Fitzgerald BTW):
“One notable difference between the NFI and PUP lists is that the team has the right to not pay base salary to a player on the NFI list. The idea is that if a player suffered his injury outside the purview of the team, they should not be responsible for his salary. However, teams will often work out deals with NFI players to pay some or all of their salary when there is a common understanding about the injury.”
JPP’s ‘base salary’ for 2019 is $13,650,000 (which doesn’t include his roster bonus of $1.0 mil or his workout bonus of $250K). He has a ‘guaranteed salary’ of $7.5 mil in 2019 (and that’s his ‘dead Cap’ hit). His total ‘guaranteed money’ under his contract is apparently $29.0 mil (according to OverTheCap, although another resource said it was $40.0 mil)) and his 2018 salary of $12.5 mil was fully guaranteed.
IF Bucs release him now, we’d still have a dead Cap hit this year of $7.5 mil for JPP. We could POTENTIALLY free up $7.4 mil this year by releasing him, but WHY? Bucs are under no obligation to pay him (beyond his $7.5 mil guarantee for this year). So come to an agreement with JPP to not pay the remaining $7.4 mil for this year, but he gets the $7.5 mil for agreeing to that. Next year if he makes it back his salary is $12.5 mil (none of it’s guaranteed apparently) which is a lot more than any other team would pay a player coming back from a broken neck.
So instead of cutting him now, just keep him on the NFI, don’t pay the remainder of his 2019 salary ($7.4 mil) and see how he progresses. If he’s fully ready to go next year, then AWESOME … we’ll have a premier DE for $12.5 mil. If not, release him then at NO COST. PATIENCE.
July 25th, 2019 at 5:50 pm
If the Bucs stink again this year, they will probably not re-sign Jameis (unless injury early in season, G-D forbid)
If they release Jameis, they will be rebuilding.
Wouldn’t it make more sense to bet on a good season and bring JPP back for final month for a playoff shot?
If the team stinks again, JPP cap money won’t make any difference.
July 25th, 2019 at 6:01 pm
Okay, Mr. Joe Bucs Fan, who would you have replace JPP if the Bucs were to cut him?
July 25th, 2019 at 6:28 pm
Arians said doctors have told them optomistic about October in his press conference this afternoon
July 25th, 2019 at 7:14 pm
Anonymous Says:
July 25th, 2019 at 6:01 pm
Okay, Mr. Joe Bucs Fan, who would you have replace JPP if the Bucs were to cut him?
Gambling that a proven knucklehead can contribute 4 games after the season has been decided… that is exactly why bucs collect basement title after basement title…. if these losers you are so scared to live without are so great why have bucs collected so many basement titles recently…. can you let anything go …0
July 25th, 2019 at 7:15 pm
When the glazers goal is basement titles year after year does it really matter who they keep or cut….
July 25th, 2019 at 7:28 pm
@D-Rome
JPP will be working out weeks before he is cleared to play. Working out is part of the recovery process. It won’t be football workouts at first, but he will be in decent shape.
As to how quickly he can play once cleared…well, he can always study the playbook during his time off AND review tape. He can show up at the facility and sit in on meetings too.
So the only thing he will be lacking is on-field practice…which he should not need much of.
July 25th, 2019 at 7:29 pm
Also, Jenna Laine did not report anything new. This is the same thing we’ve been hearing.
July 25th, 2019 at 8:43 pm
There is the off chance he can contribute this year (explained in story).
July 25th, 2019 at 8:44 pm
No. If the Bucs cut him before the season, they save $7 million. JPP had a bonus coming if he was on the roster on March 17. He earned that fairly. That money is already flushed.
July 25th, 2019 at 8:47 pm
Well, considering he won’t be on the roster for the first two months of the season, damn near anyone can replace him.
Joe advocated the Bucs trade a second-round pick for Dee Ford. The Bucs didn’t think that was smart but John Lynch did.
Joe advocated the Bucs draft Ed Oliver or Josh Allen. The Bucs thought a middle linebacker was a smarter move.
Teams on July 25 aren’t exactly motivated to unload a quality pass rusher.
July 25th, 2019 at 11:00 pm
Just heard BA say he’s on track for October… Where is November or December coming from?
July 26th, 2019 at 3:19 am
About cutting JPP due to injury I totally agree it’s the best “business” move. However with Buc history being what it is, we’ll end up with a 20 year JPP curse never having a double digit sack guy again until we make amends somehow. Just sayin’
July 26th, 2019 at 4:05 am
JPP plays at least 8 games this year. Maybe 10.