Will Gholston Is Safe
July 3rd, 2021
Not in danger.
Despite what a national NFL columnist may think, Bucs defensive lineman Will Gholston isn’t going anywhere. Certainly not this year.
Over at CBS Sports, Patrik Walker took a look at each team to name a veteran on thin ice. When it comes to the Bucs, Walker isn’t convinced Gholston has much job security and the Bucs may toss him off the pirate ship for salary cap relief.
… … they’re reloaded to potentially repeat this coming season, but also have a serious crunch with their salary cap that could stand to be addressed. This puts Gholston front-and-center as a potential cap casualty, seeing as they’re due to pay him $5.5 million in 2021. And with none of that being guaranteed, a release or trade puts every penny of it back in the Buccaneers pocket. The team is absolutely loaded on the defensive line and Gholston is a now a luxury piece they can afford to say goodbye to. It’d be wise to keep him onboard for insurance against camp injuries, but barring any, it makes sense to part ways in the final year of his deal.
Here is the thing. Joe isn’t sure how many people realize this. Who had the most quarterback hits for the Bucs? It isn’t Bucs sack king Shaq Barrett. It isn’t old warrior Jason Pierre-Paul. Nope, not even ferocious Ndamukong Suh. It isn’t even Vita Vea.
The man with the most quarterback hits was Gholston.
But Gholston’s best trait is stopping the run. Always has been. And last month when Bucs assistant defensive line coach Lori Locust appeared on the “Ira Kaufman Podcast,” she bragged that Gholston is the Bucs’ secret weapon.
When the Bucs flipped to a 34 defense upon the arrival of defensive coordinator Todd Bowles, Gholston was moved inside. He has blossomed there.
Here is another reason why Gholston is valuable: As much as Joe loves Vita Vea, he misses a lot of games with injuries. The Bucs led the NFL in rushing yards allowed at 1,289. Second place Indianapolis wasn’t even close at 1,448.
Remember, the Bucs accomplished this largely without Vea. Do the Bucs have such a punishing rush defense without Gholston? Unlikely.
The way he has developed in hitting quarterbacks and how well Gholston is against the run, you could argue the Bucs are getting high value with Gholston at his salary.
Gholston isn’t going anywhere.
July 3rd, 2021 at 8:20 am
I think Gholston is what some people call a “glue guy”.
July 3rd, 2021 at 8:20 am
The obvious question is….What is our cap situation…..according to “Over the Cap” the Bucs have $488,886 in cap space…..dead last in the NFL…
What I don’t know is if rookie salaries are included….I think they are since they have been signed…..I also don’t know what (going forward) our cap needs are before the start of the season.
Nevertheless, I agree with Joe…..Gholston needs to stay.
There is still a possibility of a long-term deal with Godwin, freeing up cash this year….or maybe even a Jensen extension and some cap savings there….but Jason will get it done somehow.
July 3rd, 2021 at 9:33 am
Another typing cretin saying Gholston should be cut. What a maroon! I’m pretty sure the Bucs don’t need cap space for anything until March of 2022.
Idiots get paid for this twaddle.
July 3rd, 2021 at 10:09 am
Will Gholston is the most underrated DE in the league. If he was cut, more than a dozen teams would be lining up for his service.
July 3rd, 2021 at 10:11 am
Is $5 million excessive for a starting tackle? I wouldn’t have thought so. The only way to cut that down is replace him with a rookie. else an inferior player
July 3rd, 2021 at 10:23 am
Hahaha. I have been saying for years gholston was not going anywhere even though the pied piper joe would bang on about the 6.5 mil per year extension he signed as if he was paid to be lawrence taylor. Joe made it seem like that money equated to jpp type production and the joettes on this site followed suit and every year many said cut him. I kept saying 6.5 mil is the perfect price tag for the best run denfender on this team prior to vita and suh. The man is still here producing as he always has. Throw in his yearly 3 sacks joe and the joeettes scoffed at and you have the model of consistency and professionalism all for just 6.5 mil. BTW…as i said for years, big time pass rushers make 12 mil+ per year and now they make 16 mil +. 6.5 mil per year is peanuts for big willie and what he brings to the table. Glad joe finally sees that. Better late than never.
July 3rd, 2021 at 10:30 am
Big Will is a bargain at his salary, IMHO.
July 3rd, 2021 at 10:41 am
Will Gholston is a good teammate, good player, good man. It would be a mistake to let him leave. I would be very surprised if this was anything more than an effort by some writer to get read.
July 3rd, 2021 at 10:43 am
We may be thin on the salary cap but just look at the talent ALL OVER the field that we’ve retained for that sum!
Is it sustainable? Hopefully. The longer we can keep the gang together, the better!
July 3rd, 2021 at 11:50 am
2021 is a the victory lap for most of the vets.
If the Bucs go back-to-back (even a losing appearance) Suh and JPP will likely retire. Gholston hopefully sticks around one more season.
It’ll be a different team. So enjoy this year as much as you can.
July 3rd, 2021 at 12:01 pm
A few years ago I was ready to let this guy walk, but the last couple of years he proved me wrong. At 5mil he’s a bargain. There are plenty of other ways the Bucs can save money but let Gholston alone.
July 3rd, 2021 at 2:01 pm
It was Gholston who was chasing Mahomes and tripped him up when he thre that incomplete pass horizontally.
He is a key part of the rotation at D Line. He is not a luxury.
July 3rd, 2021 at 4:14 pm
Had we drafted a stud DT I’d say yes. We didn’t, he ain’t going nowhere. Besides is 5.5 million really that much for a veteran DT? It’s not, who you gonna get better for that money?
July 3rd, 2021 at 7:53 pm
He’ll get 30-40% of the snaps this year, got to keep the starters rested and Gholston can do that. He won’t be as productive, but it will keep the real producers producing.
July 3rd, 2021 at 9:03 pm
Couldn’t agree more. Gholston has proved his worth and value.
You could maybe quibble with perhaps 1 mil of his salary, but that’s it. And in the NFL, 1 mil is little more than peanuts.
July 3rd, 2021 at 9:17 pm
Patrick Walker is the latest in a very long line of national writers that don’t know a damn thing about our team. Our defensive line is not even close to being loaded. Suh is the best of the bunch, but if he goes down, we are screwed. Vea is so fun to watch, but he is constantly hurt and it’s starting to look like that is just the way it’s gonna be with him. Gholston is a good player and we cannot afford to lose him since there is nothing but a whole bunch of average behind our starters.
July 4th, 2021 at 9:19 am
So CBS’s Patrick Walker sounds like he just speaks and writes nonsense. The quotes you put up of in this article Joe are nonsense. Patrick says the Bucs are loaded at d-lime and tight on cap. So therefore Bucs should release him to relieve cap Patrick says. But then in quotes you have of him here, Patrick says in them immediately following that comment, the Bucs would be wise to keep Gholston for insurance reasons but other than they should release him. What nonsense, this guy Patrick has a media job making lots pf money at NBC sports and says stupid stuff like that. It’s unbelievable that so many people read amd listen to the overpaid writers and commentators spew out garbage like that. Hey if that is the standard NBC Sports has then I could do a way better job than Patrick Walker and would like his salary and his job. Call me for the job lol. Will isn’t going anywhere from this team. He has been here since don’t adjust my ac thermostat Greg Schiano. He is a solid and reliable player. And he had a bit of a career year in 2021. Plus the Bucs d-line is only loaded until one of your starters or even one if star players goes down. Then this same waste my time Patrick Walker would be saying the Bucs are thin at D-line and in trouble and should have kept Gholoston. It’s a good thing media writers are running NBC Sports and not an actual sports team. But yet these writers get to vote and decide who wins awards and so on and so fourth when it comes to the accolades these players get from there play. And these writers and commentators come from anti America indoctrination camps like most of the big anti-America expensive colleges who get grants and tax payer money and then educate people like Patrick Walker here. Only in America, Happy 4th of July!!!
July 4th, 2021 at 10:15 am
Possibly the most underrated player on the roster.
July 4th, 2021 at 5:31 pm
If you know nothing about the Bucs, I suppose you could make that mistake. That guy is crucial.
July 4th, 2021 at 6:07 pm
Been saying exactly this since the end of the season but many Bucs fans disagree. Now Joe writes it isn’t going to happen and they all agree. I’m in the wrong line of work.