Tampa Bay Buccaneers Rumors & News - Pro Football Rumors

Bucs To Extend Donovan Smith

March 24th, 2021 at 9:37am CST by Zachary Links

The Buccaneers and offensive tackle Donovan Smith reached agreement on a two-year, $31.8MM deal, as Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. As a part of the extension, Smith will earn $30MM guaranteed over the next two years.

Between Smith’s new contract and defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh‘s re-up, this has been a pretty great morning for GM Jason Licht & Co. Many wondered if the Bucs would be able to keep the band together after their Super Bowl win, but they’ve pulled it off with some clever accounting. Quarterback Tom Brady, wide receiver Chris Godwin, edge rusher Shaq Barrett, inside linebacker Lavonte David, tight end Rob Gronkowski, and kicker Ryan Succop and other core players have been re-upped, positioning the Bucs for another championship run.

Smith has never been a world-beater, but even an average blindside protector is a valuable in the NFL. In 2019, the Bucs re-signed him to a three-year, $41.25MM contract. He’s served as the Bucs’ starting left tackle since entering the league in 2015 and he’s missed only two games throughout his career (The latest one was due to COVID-19 exposure).

Bucs To Re-Sign Rakeem Nunez-Roches

March 18th, 2021 at 4:47pm CST by Sam Robinson

While it will not register on the level that Shaquil Barrett or Lavonte David‘s re-signings did, the Buccaneers brought another member of their Super Bowl champion roster Thursday.

They are re-signing defensive lineman Rakeem Nunez-Roches, with Sirius XM Radio’s Adam Caplan reporting the veteran interior defender will sign for two years and $5MM. Nunez-Roches, who can earn up to $6.5MM on this deal, has been with the Bucs since 2018. The former Chiefs draftee will collect $2.25MM in guarantees on his latest Bucs contract.

Nunez-Roches played a career-high snap rate last season, starting 11 games for the Bucs and playing 45% of Tampa Bay’s defensive snaps. The Bucs relied on Nunez-Roches more after Vita Vea‘s injury. Nunez-Roches does not have notable pass-rushing abilities, having recorded 1.5 sacks in six seasons, and Pro Football Focus graded him as one of the worst D-tackles last season. But the Bucs have now made him a priority under two coaching staffs, and he has been a part of two strong run defenses over the past two seasons.

The team has not yet re-signed Ndamukong Suh, though given its spree of re-ups, that certainly cannot be ruled out. Nevertheless, they have one of their D-line starters back on a low-cost deal. Suh, however, remains a priority to re-sign, according to Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times (on Twitter).

Bills Had Interest In Rob Gronkowski

March 18th, 2021 at 2:59pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

The first free agency of Rob Gronkowski‘s legendary career was brief, as he was quickly re-signed by the Buccaneers on Monday. But that doesn’t mean Tampa Bay was the only option on his list, as Bills GM Brandon Beane confirmed Thursday his team had interest in the tight end.

“We spoke to his rep about him…we never made an official offer…I think there was some interest but at the end of the day, it would have been an upset for him to leave Tom Brady,” Beane said, via this tweet from Mike Giradi of NFL Network. It sounds like Buffalo expressed some interest early on but got told by his agent he was likely headed back to the Bucs and backed off.

It all makes plenty of sense because Gronk has long said the only reason he came out of retirement in the first place was to play with Brady again. Tampa also just won the Super Bowl and gave him an $8MM contract worth up to $10MM, so there’s not really any reason for him to switch things up.

Still, the thought of Gronkowski playing in Buffalo is cool. It would’ve been a homecoming for the future Hall of Famer, as he was born just 15 minutes outside of Buffalo and grew up in upstate New York. Alas, it wasn’t meant to be. The former Patriot played in all 16 games last year, finishing with 623 yards and seven touchdowns.

Buccaneers’ Chris Godwin Signs Tender

March 18th, 2021 at 10:21am CST by Zachary Links

No surprise here. On Thursday, Buccaneers wide receiver Chris Godwin signed his franchise tender (Twitter link via ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter).

Godwin is now set to earn $15.9MM in 2021, though the two sides have until mid-July to work out a long-term deal. There’s mutual interest in a multi-year arrangement, though the Buccaneers have already committed significant dollars to top players in 2022 and beyond. It might be tough, but the Bucs clearly know what they’re doing when it comes to clever accounting.

Godwin, a former third-round pick, broke out in 2019 with 86 catches for 1,333 yards and nine touchdowns en route to his first Pro Bowl nod. The stage was set for an even bigger year in 2020 — especially with Tom Brady on board — but he was eclipsed somewhat by Rob Gronkowski and Antonio Brown. Still, he finished with 65 catches for 840 yards and seven scores in 12 games, plus 16/232/1 in the playoffs.

Godwin was one of nine players to receive the tag this year, putting him in the same camp as Giants defensive lineman Leonard Williams, Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott, and Bears receiver Allen Robinson.

Buccaneers To Re-Sign K Ryan Succop

March 17th, 2021 at 6:50pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Buccaneers’ re-signing binge will spread to their special teams units. The defending Super Bowl champions reached an agreement to keep Ryan Succop.

Succop agreed to a three-year deal worth $12MM, Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times tweets. The veteran kicker will receive $6.25MM in guarantees and $8.25MM over the first two years of the deal, per Stroud.

After cycling through kickers for several seasons, the Bucs found some stability with Succop last year. They signed him late in the offseason and saw him make 28 of 31 field goal tries. The 34-year-old specialist also delivered a perfect postseason, going 13-for-13. This marked a rebound for Succop, who struggled through an injury-plagued campaign with the Titans in 2019.

Tampa Bay’s kicker woes centered around Jason Licht’s Roberto Aguayo miss, but it has been a long time since the team has made it through consecutive seasons with the same kicker. Succop doing so in 2021 would be the first instance of this occurring in Tampa since Connor Barth from 2011-12. Succop’s contract points to him stopping this unusual stretch.

Buccaneers To Re-Sign Aaron Stinnie

March 17th, 2021 at 2:27pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

Aaron Stinnie stepped up in a big way when the Buccaneers needed him most, and now he’s getting rewarded. Tampa Bay has re-signed the guard, the team announced on Wednesday.

Terms of the deal weren’t immediately available, although it’s safe to assume it wasn’t a massive payday or anything. Stinnie was set to become a restricted free agent, but rather than deal with the tendering process the team just inked him to a new deal. Few around the league were familiar with Stinnie a few months ago, but he was suddenly thrust to prominence when he began starting during the Bucs’ Super Bowl run.

Stinnie started Tampa’s final three games, including the Super Bowl, after normal starter Alex Cappa went down in the Wild Card round. Incredibly, they were the first starts of Stinnie’s NFL career, but the moment wasn’t too big for him and he performed solidly.

An UDFA in 2018 out of James Madison, Stinnie originally signed with the Titans. After a year and a half in Tennessee, he was cut and claimed off waivers by the Bucs in November of 2019. It was a really cool story during the playoffs, and it’s nice to see him get brought back.

Buccaneers’ Leonard Fournette Considering Seahawks Offer

March 16th, 2021 at 10:03am CST by Zachary Links

So far, the Buccaneers have kept most of the band together. Meanwhile, running back Leonard Fournette is considering a competitive offer from the Seahawks, according to Albert Breer of The MMQB (on Twitter).

The former fourth-overall pick was unceremoniously let go by the Jaguars at the end of the 2020 preseason. He ultimately had to settle for a one-year, $2MM deal with Tampa Bay, and he served as Ronald Jones‘ backup during the early parts of the season. Fournette filled in as starter in Week 15, and he didn’t let go of that role through the rest of the season and playoffs. He brought his best during the postseason, collecting four scores and 448 yards from scrimmage in four games.

“We’ll see,” Fournette said of his Bucs future in a recent interview. “Right now, I’m just enjoying the process right now with this W with this organization and my team. You never know what the future holds for me right now, you know? I wound up ending on a great note. I’d love to be back. We’ll have to talk to my agent and see what they’re talking about.”

The Seahawks recently decided against franchise tagging Chris Carson, which would put them in the market for help at running back. Of course, quarterback Russell Wilson would probably prefer the team to put more of their resources towards building a stronger offensive line.

Buccaneers To Bring Back Rob Gronkowski

March 15th, 2021 at 5:47pm CST by Sam Robinson

Another major Buccaneers band-retention item can be removed from their to-do list. The Super Bowl champs are re-signing Rob Gronkowski on a one-year deal worth $8MM (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero). With incentives, Gronk can earn up to $10MM.

The Bucs have now moved to retain Gronk, Chris Godwin, Shaquil Barrett and Lavonte David. While more work remains, the Bucs have ensured their top would-be free agents will stay for the team’s title defense. That’s due to some slight hometown discounts and some serious cap maneuvering. Barrett, for example, will count for less than $6MM against the Buccaneers’ 2021 salary cap. But, in total, his four-year deal is worth $68MM and could go as high as $72MM.

After capturing his first Super Bowl ring without Bill Belichick, Gronk seemed pretty set on returning to Tampa Bay.

“Yeah, I’ll remain unretired,” the tight end said in February. “I’m a free agent. It’s the first time in my career that I’m a free agent…But I definitely see myself coming back, just the guys around here, the players around here, the coaches, the people in the front office, they’re all just great people. I loved working with them all year long.”

“So, obviously going to soak this in and see where I’m at in a couple weeks, but I don’t see why not. I don’t see why I won’t be back.”

Gronkowski, 32 in May, found his footing quickly as he hauled in 45 catches for 623 yards and seven touchdowns. That stat line wasn’t as gaudy as his best seasons with the Patriots, but he showed up big in the Super Bowl, leading all receivers with six grabs for 67 yards and two TDs en route to the ring.

Buccaneers Re-Sign Shaq Barrett

March 15th, 2021 at 11:38am CST by Zachary Links

Piece by piece, Bucs are keeping the band together. Edge rusher Shaquil Barrett has agreed to re-sign on a four-year deal worth as much as $72MM (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport). The deal includes $36MM fully guaranteed and, remarkably, will carry a minuscule $5.6MM cap hit in 2021.

As a free agent in 2019, Barrett received tepid interest. Offers came only from the Bucs and Bengals, and Barrett signed a one-year, $4MM Bucs pact. The Bucs tagged him last year, following his franchise-record-setting 19.5-sack season. Barrett will turn 29 later this year and seized his chance to secure a lucrative long-term deal.

Barrett’s rise through the football ranks has been meteoric. He started as a Division II recruit before switching to Colorado State. Then, he turned pro and spent 2014 on the Broncos’ practice squad. By 2015, he found a role in the Broncos’ defense.

After the 2019 tag, Barrett recorded eight 2020 regular season sacks and added four in the playoffs. He also finished on a high note, notching eight pressures in Super Bowl LV.

Barrett’s deal carries a base value of $68MM over the four-year stretch. The other $4MM can be earned off of escalators. If Barrett reached 15 sacks and the Bucs make the playoffs, he’ll add another $1MM to his forthcoming yearly salary. The average value of $18MM/year is solid, though several ticks behind Joey Bosa and Myles Garrett who will have ~$25MM/ year.

The Bucs have been busy this month, re-signing inside linebacker Lavonte David and deploying franchise tag on wide receiver Chris Godwin. They also reached a one-year extension with quarterback Tom Brady to free up additional space — he’ll carry a lighter cap hit in 2021 with voidable years in 2023 and beyond.

Latest On Tom Brady's New Bucs Deal

March 13th, 2021 at 4:16pm CST by Sam Robinson

Thanks largely to void-years maneuvering, the Buccaneers have Tom Brady set to collect a massive 2021 sum but only count $9.1MM against their cap. On his latest extension, Brady will take home $41.1MM this year, Tom Pelissero of NFL.com tweets. The contract calls for a $24MM cap number in 2022, when Brady is only due to collect $8.9MM. The Bucs are stacking three void years to make this work, and Pelissero adds the team will save $19.3MM against this year’s cap by making this move (Twitter link). A whopping $24MM in void-years prorations will reside on Tampa Bay’s 2023-25 caps. If the Bucs do not extend Brady again by the time this contract expires in March 2023, they will be hit with the entire $24MM in dead-money sum on their 2023 payroll.

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