Gamewrecker
December 3rd, 2019
What to do?
The more Joe thinks about it, the more Joe is of the mind this needs to happen for Bucs sack king Shaq Barrett.
The guy has become a gamewrecker, a term of endearment used by coaches for the most feared of defenders.
We all know Barrett leads the NFL in sacks with 14.5 and is within reach of tying Warren Sapp for the franchise record for sacks in a season with 16.5.
But there’s more. It seems Barrett is a turnover machine.
With his forced fumble in Jacksonville on Sunday, when he leveled Jags quarterback Nick Foles allowing Devin White to scoop-and-score for his first NFL touchdown, Barrett now has six forced fumbles this season. That leads the NFL. Chandler Jones, Khalil Mack and T.J. Watt each have five.
Bucs AC/DC-loving general manager Jason Licht has a whole bunch of very tough, very important financial decisions to make early next year. Decisions that will directly impact the franchise for the next few years and beyond.
One is what to do with Barrett, who will be a free agent when the dinner bell rings in March.
March 10 is the deadline for teams to tag players (franchise or transition tags). March 18, the free agency dinner bell sounds.
Barrett, repped by oily Drew Rosenhaus, has the Bucs over a barrel. To tag Barrett, it would cost the Bucs more than $15 million for 2020. The franchise tag value for this season for linebackers is a hair under $15 million. There is no designation for “outside linebacker” or “pass rusher.” Just “linebacker” or “defensive end.”
And Lord help Team Glazer’s accountants if Barrett hits the free agent market.
Tagging Barrett would probably make Rosenhaus squeal. And not in a good way.
Joe knows the Bucs will have lots of cap room but they’re jammed if they want to bring back all their best player. Major decisions for Licht in the coming weeks. Not sure the Bucs can afford to let Barrett walk.
December 3rd, 2019 at 11:47 am
It’s pretty simple…
1) Sign Barrett to a long term deal. He’s earned it. He’s our new Simeon Rice to go along with our new stud in the middle, Vea.
2) Let Jameis Winston walk. He’s not worth a $27M franchise tag due to his inconsistency and turnover issues. Just like Shaq is valuable for causing so many turnovers, Jameis is a liability in that department and there’s not a single NFL analyst or former NFL GM/coach that doesn’t agree.
3) Sign the top Free Agent cornerback in free agency with the money saved from letting Winston walk and having money left over.
4) Look to sign a solid Free Agent safety.
5) Sign Teddy Bridgewater or another serviceable QB that ‘might’ be our future but would cost less than keeping Jameis, while we also look to draft our QB of the future in April.
December 3rd, 2019 at 11:51 am
Tag barrett and keep him here, lets see if this is a one year wonder or he is actually a future superstar…..jason licht is such a bad gm and has built this team so poorly…the bucs if they had a quality gm could be like the bills or niners but the bucs are the bucs
December 3rd, 2019 at 11:51 am
P.S. And I swear this isn’t BS… I heard directly from a source (NFL Agent that doesn’t represent Winston but is a Top 10 agency in the NFL) that had casual conversations with Jameis’ team about 18 months ago. They’re open to possibly switching agencies (or were at that time) but the biggest takeaway from what this agent told me is that Jameis’ team made the comment… “We truly believe Jameis is a $35 Million a year player.”
So all this “Jameis will give Tampa a discount on extending him” isn’t going to happen in my opinion. His team (and Jameis) are wanting to get paid like a Top 5 QB.
December 3rd, 2019 at 11:53 am
🙂
December 3rd, 2019 at 11:58 am
Agree with Dusthy.
December 3rd, 2019 at 12:00 pm
If Jason and Co. can be credited for something it’s that the contracts they sign players to are very team-friendly. I don’t think I’ve seen a single one under his tenure that made me wanna puke as far as guaranteed money is concerned.
The market will be a major determinant as to how the Bucs will approach the offseason. I believe they would be wise to use that franchise tag, and it really comes down to how the market views Barrett and Winston.
Despite a single season as a starter Barrett looks like he’s the real deal and is exactly the type of player teams will be climbing over each other to sign for 20+ mil a year. If he keeps it up and ends the year close to 20 sacks, you can bet this will happen and the Bucs would be smart to slap him with the tag, which looks to be $16.27 million according to Jenna Laine’s article. This way they can evaluate the longevity of Barrett’s greatness without too much risk.
Winston, on the other hand, is seen as a major liability. Major ups and major downs aren’t a formula for a multi-year break the bank type of deal. Looking at the slate of teams who will be QB hungry (Bengals, Dolphins, maybe Broncos, maybe Chargers, Steelers, maybe Titans, Colts) his best option is to stay under the tutelage of Arians and Co. and hope that the team continues trending up. Franchise tag for QBs looks to be $26,700,000 according to OvertheCap, which would be a major overvaluation of Winston imo. This spells that Winston should resign with the Bucs, who I am hoping will offer a team-friendly 2-3 year deal, which is probably the best thing he can hope for given the market.
Then again, we have Jason Licht as GM.
December 3rd, 2019 at 12:00 pm
If Jason and Co. can be credited for something it’s that the contracts they sign players to are very team-friendly. I don’t think I’ve seen a single one under his tenure that made me wanna puke as far as guaranteed money is concerned.
The market will be a major determinant as to how the Bucs will approach the offseason. I believe they would be wise to use that franchise tag, and it really comes down to how the market views Barrett and Winston.
Despite a single season as a starter Barrett looks like he’s the real deal and is exactly the type of player teams will be climbing over each other to sign for 20+ mil a year. If he keeps it up and ends the year close to 20 sacks, you can bet this will happen and the Bucs would be smart to slap him with the tag, which looks to be $16.27 million according to Jenna Laine’s article from today. This way they can evaluate the longevity of Barrett’s greatness without too much risk.
Winston, on the other hand, is seen as a major liability. Major ups and major downs aren’t a formula for a multi-year break the bank type of deal. Looking at the slate of teams who will be QB hungry (Bengals, Dolphins, maybe Broncos, maybe Chargers, Steelers, maybe Titans, Colts) his best option is to stay under the tutelage of Arians and Co. and hope that the team continues trending up. Franchise tag for QBs looks to be $26,700,000 according to OvertheCap, which would be a major overvaluation of Winston imo. This spells that Winston should resign with the Bucs, who I am hoping will offer a team-friendly 2-3 year deal, which is probably the best thing he can hope for given the market.
Then again, we have Jason Licht as GM.
December 3rd, 2019 at 12:01 pm
I heard from my sister’s wife’s brother’s first cousin’s neighbor’s roomate’s pet hamster that Jameis wants top 5 QB money.
December 3rd, 2019 at 12:09 pm
@bucsbandit sure thing buddy we all believe ya. But on a side note, my wifes sisters former roomate works at a grociery store that Arians frequents. Hes been quoted as saying jameis is worth every penny.
December 3rd, 2019 at 12:09 pm
@Uncle,
Your sister is a lesbian?
December 3rd, 2019 at 12:09 pm
Lets not forget he was slowed by an injury for a few games…
December 3rd, 2019 at 12:13 pm
@BucsBandit
1. Agree with this. No brainer. Guys who produce at this rate are NOT one year wonders. And he’s YOUNG
2. Disagree except if it costs us a chance to extend Godwin early. Then yes. Otherwise if we can afford it sign to a 3 year deal. Also young and he’s made his mistakes but for last couple years led powerhouse offenses. That’s no mistake
3. Disagree. We have the guys we need and they’re young and cheap and improving immensely
4. Disagree for same reason
5. Disagree unless we absolutely cannot afford Jameis, then I’ve been a big Teddy B fan since we were drooling over Johnny Football
So NOT having to fix our secondary for once, plus our offense isn’t TE friendly so do we sign OJ to a long term deal? Or trade him or Brate instead of wasting them both? That all frees cap. And then we go heavy on O line in draft and free agency if needed to upgrade both tackles and get good depth there and on D line since we may also have to lose Nassib or possibly JPP.
December 3rd, 2019 at 12:13 pm
lambchop you are discounting the post marriage sex change
December 3rd, 2019 at 12:14 pm
@BucsBandit
Jameis isn’t getting 35 mil a year that’s Russell Wilson money and he’s no where near that but with that said if Nick Foles got 22 mil a year last season I can see Jameis getting 25-26 mil a year on the open market
As far as Barrett I’d sign the man but probably wouldn’t commit to more than 2 yrs guaranteed money at this point. So probably a 4 yr/56 mil contract with 28 mil guaranteed is what I see him getting.
December 3rd, 2019 at 12:15 pm
Bucs signed him on a 1 year prove it deal. He proved it, sign the man. The strip sack is better than an INT as it happens behind the LOS, and some guys just have a knack for it.
December 3rd, 2019 at 12:16 pm
December 3rd, 2019 at 11:47 am
It’s pretty simple…
1) Sign Barrett to a long term deal. He’s earned it. He’s our new Simeon Rice to go along with our new stud in the middle, Vea.
2) Let Jameis Winston walk. He’s not worth a $27M franchise tag due to his inconsistency and turnover issues. Just like Shaq is valuable for causing so many turnovers, Jameis is a liability in that department and there’s not a single NFL analyst or former NFL GM/coach that doesn’t agree.
3) Sign the top Free Agent cornerback in free agency with the money saved from letting Winston walk and having money left over.
————————————————-
Effing STUPID. We need to sign a top free agent CB why? Have you seen our young CBs balling out? Just dumb! What top free agent CB will be available or do you not care and just want to throw money at somebody to do something our younger guys will do just as well or better for 1/10 the amount?
A $15 million dollar franchise tag on Barrett sounds like a steal.
December 3rd, 2019 at 12:18 pm
We’re pretty flexible. If Winston is gone we can do whatever we want and if he stays we likely drop a few older players.
Per sportrack I’m showing projected $90m in cap to spend. I’d probably go:
Winston – $25M short term deal to see if he can hit a big deal with a winning 2020 season
Shaq – $18M (front load with lesser cap hits in later years to offset potential Winston big extension)
JPP – $15M short term deal
Nassib – $10M longer term deal
That puts us at $68M of the $90M. Can still sign a solid vet CB / S / RB & maybe some other depth positions. Keeps our core pass rush together besides Suh.
Can also cut guys like Gholston / Brate if we want to free up another $10M.
Draft a disruptive DT to compliment Vea and another DT late to develop. Draft an OT to replace Dotson and either pass rusher or interior lineman based on the best value. If we find a C to replace Jensen that’s another $10M we can spend elsewhere if we wanted.
December 3rd, 2019 at 12:19 pm
Is it possible to write incentives into Jameis’ contract stating if you throw X amount of int’s you get X money? If the man was a “top 5 QB” I want to pay him. If not, I absolutely don’t want to pay him. Simple as that.
December 3rd, 2019 at 12:20 pm
Colonel – đź’Ż …and who’s to say he won’t sit out if tagged and force a trade? Knowing his agent…
December 3rd, 2019 at 12:23 pm
Pay the man Bucs!
December 3rd, 2019 at 12:23 pm
agree with most that Shaq should be the priority signing for this team given the lack of pass rush we’ve seen here for years.
If we bring back Shaq/Nassib/JPP then we don’t HAVE to go pass rusher in this next draft. We still should – but that’s a pretty damn good rotation of starters.
I’d rather bring those 3 back and let Suh walk. There’s some good disruptive DT’s to be had in R1 or R2. Same with OT.
DT/OT with 1st 2 picks
BPA at RB/DE/Interior lineman with 3rd round picks and beyond
screw WR/TE & secondary for a draft IMO. we’ve gone to the well enough there
December 3rd, 2019 at 12:31 pm
FairMinded Says:
December 3rd, 2019 at 12:20 pm
Colonel – 💯 …and who’s to say he won’t sit out if tagged and force a trade? Knowing his agent…
I didn’t say tag him, I said sign him to long term deal.
December 3rd, 2019 at 12:32 pm
FairMinded Says:
December 3rd, 2019 at 12:20 pm
Colonel – 💯 …and who’s to say he won’t sit out if tagged and force a trade? Knowing his agent…
I didn’t say tag him, I said sign him to long term deal. Pay him.
December 3rd, 2019 at 12:33 pm
Agree with LordCornelius.
December 3rd, 2019 at 12:41 pm
pay him before the season ends….
licht resigned marpet and d.smith….
i dont see why he wouldnt sign shaq….
GO BUCS!!!!!
December 3rd, 2019 at 12:45 pm
LC
I AGREE….
both DTs from auburn look good….kinlaw out of south carolina looks good….
OL-get one from GA, WISC and BAMA….
GO BUCS!!!!
December 3rd, 2019 at 12:45 pm
AJ EPENESA coming to a theater near you!
Ripping heads off and cussing QBs to throw INTs into DWHITE45’s chest for a picSix ala DBROOKS55
Let’s Go!
December 3rd, 2019 at 12:49 pm
Problem here that I see some people saying to tag Barrett is that his agent Drew Rosenhaus will not stand for it one bit. Rosenhaus will most certainly warn the Bucs ahead of time that if the Bucs tag Barrett, that his client will not show up to work for the Buccaneers until roughly around November 2020 (week 10) when the deadline is to accrue a season towards free agency.
Is it still worth tagging Barrett at that point? I’d say no, it would become a major negative distraction for the organization for the entire 2020 season.
December 3rd, 2019 at 12:53 pm
Keep them all except the “PROBLEM”, the human turnover machine…
December 3rd, 2019 at 1:10 pm
The top priority is to sign Shaq & then Nassib & JPP.After thowe three are signed then JW & not before. Need to keep the D intact as much as possibe. I would consider letting Brate, Allen & Gholston walk. Of course Dotson but that goes without saying. To bad they’re stuck with D. (lazy ass) Smith for one more year. Thanks Licht. (dumb ass)
December 3rd, 2019 at 1:13 pm
No matter what happens at the QB position this off season, if we don’t bring back this pass rush next years QB will be forced to put up 30+ points every game. Good luck with that!! They need to find a way to pay all the pass rushers.
December 3rd, 2019 at 1:17 pm
LOL at Jameis getting 35/million a year.
Never gonna happen
December 3rd, 2019 at 1:29 pm
Blue-footed booby, if Shaq held out from signing franchise tag, then we will have more money to spend as well as his rights still.
We can franchise him again next year too.
If lily Drew wants to play BS games, then so can the Bucs brass.
Don’t think it would come to that.
Shaq wants to play. He’s a good dude.
December 3rd, 2019 at 1:32 pm
Gotta let some TE’s go. I mean, if you’re not gonna friggin use them AT ALL then make room for the true difference makers.
December 3rd, 2019 at 2:22 pm
Must Keep
-Barrett
-JPP
-Nassib
Nice to Have
-Winston
-Suh
Should sign early
-Godwin
December 3rd, 2019 at 2:29 pm
LC
Great analysis, I think we need about 22 mill to sign our rookies-If he is willing, jameis should sign a 3 year/75 mill with a club option for 4th year. This would be a steal for the Bucs, IMO. If Jameis balls out and gets a 3rd contract, He will only be 30 years old. That is just incredible to think about. If he sucks as some have claimed- You scrap everyone and put a guy in that is on his rookie contract and is friendly toward the cap.
People on this site don’t care that he is about to set a record for most yards in 1st five years. (probably an INT or Turnover record, too,lol). They don’t care our offensive line has been subpar, kickers have lost games/ our defense couldn’t hold anybody ever/ our running game is non-existent, etc. The amazing part is, other teams know all of these things and force him to throw and he is still putting up these numbers. Also, this is why he has so many TOs. Jameis will always try to win a game even down 30. He will take the INT to try get points on the board for this team.
December 3rd, 2019 at 2:34 pm
I don’t see what the dilemma is because their honestly isn’t one. It’s common football sense. Even Jameis knows defense wins championships. Buccs have not had or developed a pass rusher since Bennett that we gave away for nothing. To repeat that and lose Barrett could set the buccs pass rush back another 10 years. Buccs don’t use draft capital on drafts. They just happens to have won the lottery by getting a non starter in free agency. Lightning won’t strike twice. Pay the young man and make your entire defense better for years to come.
December 3rd, 2019 at 2:37 pm
4 years 70 mil with 45 guaranteed.. Done, sign him up
December 3rd, 2019 at 2:56 pm
Bucsfan1988 maybe someone else can verify but I don’t think that’s the case. When the Steelers gave Leveon Bell the franchise tag the 2nd time in 2018 I’m pretty sure his cap hold charge still applied to the Steelers even though he never signed the franchise tag.
Also, while you say that about Shaq Barrett, whom I also think loves to play the game of football and is a good guy in general, that same description can also be applied to Vincent Jackson, who tried everything in his power to get out of San Diego to become an unrestricted free agent even after the Chargers designated the franchise tag on Jackson.
December 3rd, 2019 at 3:16 pm
I think everyone is aware if anyone gets the franchise tag its going to be Jameis. Who in their right mind would sign Jameis long term but you cant let him go with few options. So…… if letting Shaq go to keep Jameis is the deal I am all against it.
December 3rd, 2019 at 3:35 pm
Dusthty Rhothdes Says:
“Jason licht is such a bad gm and has built this team so poorly…the bucs if they had a quality gm could be like the bills or niners but the bucs are the bucs…”
.
.
Yup. I don’t care how great the Bucs are for three last 4 weeks, and next year. It isn’t because of Lichtweight, but in spite of him. He built this team ass backwards, distracted for years by shiny toys like a monkey or a crow–when he should have built the trenches first.
Instead, the team suffered from poor line play and overspending on positions which should have been drafted from the get-go. Now he’s going to draft those positions finally, then act like he’s a hero for building this team 5 years too late. It’s simpleton’s luck that his FA defensive line combination worked out for once.
December 3rd, 2019 at 3:41 pm
Uncle Says:
“I heard from my sister’s wife’s brother’s first cousin’s neighbor’s roomate’s pet hamster that Jameis wants top 5 QB money.”
.
.
And I heard it from my Uncle Intel. LOL
December 3rd, 2019 at 4:00 pm
Total personality decision. It’s a fun problem to have but lots of players go all out for the payday then mail it in. If he had consistent production I’d be more inclined to pay him but only the brain trust at One Buc will see the real Shaq and I hope to heck he’s a team guy.
December 3rd, 2019 at 4:04 pm
Licht will sign Winston to a huge top 5 contract MARK IT!
December 3rd, 2019 at 4:33 pm
Barrett needs to play under the franchise tag and come close to repeating this year’s impact in order to deserve a long term $18-20M per year commitment.
Rosenhaus can “squeal” all he wants – but he has no say in the matter if the Bucs do the smart thing and Franchise Tag Shaq Barrett.
In order to do that, the Bucs will have to work out a contract with Winston. Hopefully both sides in that negotiation are willing to be fair – and can come to some type of incentive laden 3-4 year deal worth $25M or less per year that guarantees little more than 1 year at that rate.
The Bucs need to then turn their attention to re-signing JPP to a 2-3 year contract. $33M for 3 years with half that guaranteed sounds about right.
These are the 3 free agents that Licht CANNOT let hit free agency and MUST find a way to bring back.
Beyond that, resigning Nassib for hopefully about $6-7M per year should be way up there on the priority list as well.
If Suh will come back for $6M per year with incentives – we could use him for at least one more year – but not at $10M.
Draft a DT (Suh’s replacement) somewhere in the first 3 rounds next draft, prioritize finding a solid young RT in the 1st or 2nd rd, take a chance on a speedy, productive, pass catching RB in the mid rounds and spend the rest of the draft mostly on OL and DL prospects for depth and development.
December 3rd, 2019 at 4:49 pm
@Cornelius maybe you missed the “100” which means I agree with you and then I added to your point. Didn’t disagree
December 3rd, 2019 at 4:58 pm
Pickgrin this WAS the prove it year. Don’t be silly. He deserves the big pay day there’s nothing left to prove with that kind of stat line unless you think it’s LUCK that gets a player to 14.5 sacks and 6 forced fumbles in 12 games?
December 3rd, 2019 at 5:22 pm
Pay the man. Franchise Jameis. Negotiate a bridge deal or better with Vea. The 3-4 works with the players we have. Then figure out some way to keep JPP in the rotation.
December 3rd, 2019 at 6:36 pm
Fair Minded – “this WAS the prove it year”.
Yes – in a sense – but its also just one year that Shaq has played at such a high level. I personally would like to see him “do it again” at something close to this years level AND stay healthy for a full 2nd season before committing $20 million per year with 2 or 3 years of guarantees to one defensive pass rusher.
$16M for the franchise tag designation is a hell of a raise from earning $4M this year – so its not like Barrett isn’t getting rewarded for having such a big season this year.
If he plays at a very high level for a 2nd year – then hell yea – lock the guy up long term and back up the Brinks truck to do so – but as things sit right now – it would be smart to franchise tag Barrett for 2020 and see how next year turns out as well.
Odds are higher that Shaq is an 8-10 sack per year guy that should be paid around $10-12M per – than a guy who gets 12-14 sacks every year and truly deserves that $20M per year (guaranteed) long term expenditure for premium talent off the edge….
I know its not all about sacks – but that is the stat that gets pass rushers paid.
Barrett has benefited quite a bit from having JPP and Nassib coming off the other side with Vea and Suh also doing a great job of eating up blockers in the middle.
I’m not ragging on the guy at all. He’s had a dream season and looks to be the real deal in every respect off the edge. You obviously don’t let the guy get to free agency. I would just prefer to see him do it consistently for 2 years straight before throwing $20M per year guaranteed at one defensive player which is what 15+ sack players earn in the NFL these days. Hopefully Licht feels the same way because locking up Barrett at the expense of NOT bringing back JPP and Nassib would be a big mistake.
For the first time since the mirage of 5 games in 2016 and I don’t know when before that – the Bucs have a fearsome pass rush.
Licht needs to figure out how to keep the band together (including Suh if possible) for at least 1 more year and draft DL to develop in the upcoming draft as well.
Hard to do that if you are paying one DL player $20+M next year.
December 3rd, 2019 at 8:46 pm
This is the easiest decision they have, the man is pure swag, game changer. He needs to be in the Bay Area for years to come, pay him and Godwin and then figure out the rest.
December 3rd, 2019 at 8:49 pm
I see the same offer to JW as DSmith, 3 years, mid tier offer – if he doesn’t take it, franchise him at basically the same price, but for only one year…
25-27 mil is mid tier for an NFL QB
Barrett gets $1mil per sack, straight from BA – he probably ends near 18 – so $18mil x 4 years for him, 3 guaranteed, year 4 team option
We must keep Shaq and we have to keep JW, if the last four go like the past 4 –
if we can get to 8-8 immediately after the Dirk fiasco and play solid D like we have been, why disrupt and start over?
Use the huge cap space we have to keep the studs and draft some more help in our slim talent or depth areas, like OL, RB –
Stay away from free agency until the second and third tiers, build through the draft to the base we can see growing before our eyes
Stay the course…
December 3rd, 2019 at 8:54 pm
Totally agree with Lord Cornelius`s draft recommendations. They align with mine.
Only difference is I say keep Brate (TE).
December 3rd, 2019 at 9:06 pm
Still think JPP will retire after this season.
December 4th, 2019 at 8:02 am
I’m not saying he’s a one hit wonder. But Barret should be tagged. I don’t say that to be disrespectful. I say that cuz to many times we have signed one hit wonders just for them to be average to less then average the next year. If Barret does this same production next year too then break the bank for this guy. We need consistency. Sorry Winston I’m a fan but your to inconsistent to get a big contract. Do us all a favor an give this team a prove it deal so you got 1 more year under the QB whisper an maybe just maybe be a consistent QB. He really does have what it takes to be great just got to cut down on the turnovers an learn to lean on your defense IF they can play consistent too.