Who Was Jason Licht Bidding Against?
August 26th, 2021
Fought off NFL wolves.
We all know Bucs AC/DC-loving general manager Jason Licht pulled off the near-impossible this offseason.
He kept all 22+1 starters from a Super Bowl winner. It hasn’t happened since the 1970s.
It was a gargantuan task. Large enough that Licht confessed while appearing on “Movin’ the Chains” this week, heard exclusively on SiriusXM NFL Radio, that he began fretting about it while he shuffled his feet through the confetti lining the field of the Stadium on Dale Mabry Highway the night the Bucs won the Super Bowl.
“We were walking off the field after the Super Bowl and I looked to my wife and said, ‘Oh man, we’ve got a lot of work to do here.’ And she goes, ‘Don’t go into offseason mode yet.'”
But to hear Licht put it, squeezing the free agents’ salaries under the cap was just one of his hurdles. He also had to fight off other teams trying to cherry-pick the Bucs’ free agents.
“We had the flexibility to do it,” Licht said. “Now were the players going to be able to do it, with everybody? Normally, coming off a Super Bowl, [free agents] have a lot of suitors if you are a good player. And they did.
“But I feel like everybody wanted to be part of this again. We have a great coaching staff. A lot of great players. We have the greatest quarterback of all time.
“So going through it, I didn’t think we were going to get everybody but we managed to do it and I am very excited about it.”
Now Licht didn’t say what players were being pulled in different ways by other teams. Nor did Licht mention any team he was in a bidding war(s) with to keep his starters.
Joe is just going to guess Chris Godwin would have been one if he hadn’t been franchise tagged.
For example, you don’t think Urban Meyer didn’t want a class act, throwback old school warrior and baller like Godwin for his rookie franchise quarterback Trevor Lawrence to throw to, just to name one team?
Same with the Jets and Zach Wilson?
Joe is pretty sure Licht saied in an offseason interview that he thought he would be able to keep Shaq Barrett if Shaq got on the open market, but if Godwin got there he was as good as gone.
August 26th, 2021 at 8:18 am
That was quite an accomplishment by Jason Licht!
I heard rumors about Jacksonville being interested in Chris Godwin, but I am glad he stayed put, and signed with us.
August 26th, 2021 at 8:24 am
Listening to Pat Kirwan & Jim Miller kiss this Franchise’s ass for 2hrs straight on their radio broadcast was beautiful. Pat always says something weird though….he suggested that bucs put Ross Cockrell on the practice squad & hope that no other team picks him up
August 26th, 2021 at 8:28 am
Dang I thought you were actually gonna tell us.
I hope we curb stomp the Rams.
August 26th, 2021 at 8:29 am
Love that Godwin is back. I’d love to see him have a big year and stay here. One of the more interesting things about The Brady Years – aside from winning one or two titles – will end up being what happens after him. Arians has the resume to hang it up, but Licht will always be the Brady GM if he can’t win without him. As much as last year was fun, and this year was exciting, there is something the Bucs haven’t done since Doug… build a winner with a drafted QB. By doing so, you don’t get a couple great runs in 40+ years, you get continuous success and are in the mix at the end of every year. I’ll enjoy this season, but really hope they can build a long term winner this time. Brad Johnson was old. Brady is old. Those rings count, but they don’t get you 10 years of excitement like a young QB.
August 26th, 2021 at 8:29 am
Hopefully Godwin can stay healthy for all 17 (big if) regular season games and into the playoffs. If he ends up doing that and leading the team in the most relevant receiver categories, I don’t see Licht letting him get away. If it’s just a continuation of the previous two years where he’s good, not great and misses games, then we gotta let him get overpaid elsewhere. He’s better than Amari, but not worth Amari money right now. Please don’t make the same mistake that the doorknob running the cowboys did with Cooper Mr. Licht.
August 26th, 2021 at 8:50 am
Players have a choice of signing with another team for more money and also have a choice to sign for marginally less money. After their careers are over these players can look back and decide if staying with Tom Brady and the Bucaneers organization was the right choice for them.
Those players who wanted to achieve greatness can look back and know that playing with the GOAT, playing with a team of great players that chose to “run it back,” a great coaching staff and a world class organization will leave a legacy that will probably never be duplicated.
The players, coaches, organization understand this and that is why they all come back to fulfill their destiny – their legacy.
August 26th, 2021 at 9:47 am
All or nothing this season cause keeping them all next season would be impossible, especially if they do repeat.
August 26th, 2021 at 10:09 am
Teamwork all the way around.
Love to be in that foxhole.
August 26th, 2021 at 10:40 am
I want to buy a Godwin Jersey for my son but I won’t until he signs a long term deal which I Hope is before the season ends
August 26th, 2021 at 11:36 am
Godwin has a lot of skills that go unnoticed by most fans. He is an incredible blocker and a tough matchup for most linebackers. He is better than good. Maybe not yet great but certainly a top 10 receiver. #underrated
August 26th, 2021 at 12:04 pm
I suspect that Godwin, who is wise beyond his years, understands a longer view of his career beyond just money.
The real test is what happens after Brady hangs them up.
August 26th, 2021 at 12:50 pm
As a long time Buc fan this statement is extremely rare…
“But I feel like everybody wanted to be part of this again. We have a great coaching staff. A lot of great players. We have the greatest quarterback of all time.”
Wow. That’s awesome to read!
Go Bucs!!!
August 26th, 2021 at 1:10 pm
Something that impressed me about Chris is that when A Brown scored a TD and he was on the field he was the first one to run to AB giving him props. Unselfish team guy…Love it.
August 26th, 2021 at 2:09 pm
Joe, when you regurgitate the same article 15 times can you at least add something new, at the end of each version? Thanks!
August 26th, 2021 at 4:24 pm
The endorsement $ for superbowl winning players should go along way towards compensating for the extra money and misery you get playing for a lousy team.
August 26th, 2021 at 4:39 pm
How’s this for a crazy idea, Brady gets another superbowl and then Aaron Rodgers comes to play for Tampa Bay. I know, crazy, but who knows?
August 26th, 2021 at 7:29 pm
Godwin still may be gone after this season. Like Joe said, He’s playing the 2021 season under a franchise tag.