Report: Tampa Bay Buccaneers Expected to Cut Eric Wright
By Josh Hill
Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Eric Wright was supposed to be the Buccaneers contingency plan in case troubled cornerback Aqib Talib got to be too much to handle once again. But while the Talib scenario played out, and he was shipped to New England, Wright proved to be a replacement for Talib in all the wrong ways.
Now, according to Mark Cook from The Pewter Report, Wright’s stay in Tampa is over. Cook reports that the Buccaneers will part ways with Wright sometime before OTAs this upcoming spring.
Wright underwhelmed at corner this season and that wasn’t helped by the fact that he missed four games due to a suspension. Both Wright and Talib were busted for using Adderral and both eventually served out four game bans for violating league policy. Talib’s suspension was the final straw that lead to his departure from Tampa, and it seems that it’s the final straw for Wright as well.
The Bucs will look the both free agency and the draft to improve a secondary that was ranked dead last in the NFL in 2012.
Also according to The Pewter Report, Wright had an undisclosed ailment that had a negative effect on his energy levels. It was because of this that Wright was M.I.A. for most of the Bucs offseason workouts and explains his use of Adderral.
"Shortly after Wright was signed, it was learned by Pewter Report that Wright was dealing with a serious undisclosed medical condition that affected his energy levels negatively. Wright missed a good deal of the offseason workouts and organized team activity days due to the undisclosed medical condition. The team was actually concerned they made a colossal mistake by signing him to such a huge deal during the summer, but Wright got the medicine he needed to treat his condition and was able to take part in training camp."
When Wright was signed as the third member of the Bucs big three free agent signings this offseason, it was clear that he was the odd man out. Vincent Jackson and Carl Nicks were Pro Bowler that filled obvious needs, but Wright seemed like a Carlos Boozer signing, where the Bucs signed him simply because they needed a corner and couldn’t lure in anyone else.
Cortland Finnegan had already signed in St. Louis and Brandon Carr was headed to Dallas leaving Wright as the “best” available option.
Simply put, the Buccaneers overpaid for an average cornerback and it backfired in the worst of ways. The Buccaneers will be eating some money, but it’s far less than it could have been. Because Wright was suspended, he voided all his guaranteed money, meaning the Bucs can cut Wright and only end up paying $5.54 million for his services, which is far less than the nearly $30 million left on his contract.
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