Should the Buccaneers re-sign Vincent Jackson?
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The Buccaneers are in the midst of their off-season program as we speak. Four teams are still working on 2016, the rest are on to 2017, and that includes the Bucs. It’s time to prepare for the free agency period, and following that, the NFL draft.
But first, the evaluation of the current players is underway. James Yarcho wrote about the salary cap situation. Simply put, the Bucs will have money to spend. James makes some great suggestions on how to give the team more money to play with, but the question is how to use it.
Of course, some will be spent on outside free agents, but some will be spent on in-house free agents. According to Spotrac, the Bucs have decisions to make on 17 unrestricted free agents. So far we talked about Jacquizz Rodgers here, and Chris Conte here. Today we are taking a look at a big name.
The subject of today’s debate is Vincent Jackson.
Why Jackson Should Stay
Don’t click the page without reading, believe it or not, the case can be made.
A veteran can be a stabilizing force with a young team. They give young players someone to look up to. Here’s a guy that has been there before. We do this work in mini camp, training camp, and week to week, so we can be like this veteran, and have a reputation in this league. Jackson is 34 years old and has been in the league 12 years. Take him out of the mix, and the average age of Bucs wide receivers is under 24 years old. Jackson can be an anchor for this group.
It’s not like he has been bad during his Tampa career. Over his first three years with the team, he posted over 1,000 yards receiving each year, and a combined 17 touchdown receptions. In 2015, prior to his injury, his yards per reception were a healthy 16.5. This is a player that when healthy has been a successful player with the Bucs.
They could bring him back on a low-cost, “show me” contract to let him prove to the world what he has left.
Why Jackson Should Go
Let’s face it, over the last two seasons, Jackson hasn’t been on the field much. After playing every game over his first three seasons in Tampa, he was only active for 15 games over the last two seasons. After his injury in 2015, he was expected to return in 2016 and be the perfect number two, balancing things out for Mike Evans on the other side. What happened? Jackson was only around for five games, and Evans led the league in targets with 173 (per Sporting Charts).
Bad luck for a guy that was supposed to be a key player.
Taking that further, however, we saw a troubling trend. There were times in 2016 where Vincent Jackson simply looked disinterested. He was running routes at less than full speed, displaying “alligator arms” on passes, and showing the body language of player that simply doesn’t care. Is this a player we want around as a role model for younger players?
The Decision
Coach Koetter could do a lot with a healthy Vincent Jackson. Every leading man needs a co-star, and we all know that Mike Evans needs one of those. We have talked at length on this website about how the receivers need help. As Michael Horan wrote here, the Bucs need speed. Jackson has performed well with the Bucs in the past, and if he is healthy he could be that speed guy that Jameis Winston needs on the opposite side of Evans.
But what if he is done? The injury bug has gotten to him as of late, and we know what happens to football players after they turn 30. Unless they are super human like Tom Brady or James Harrison, they see their skills erode. Combine that with the fact that he appeared disinterested and it seems like it might be time to say goodbye.
Next: The Future of the Bucs Offensive Line
So what are the Bucs to do? They go with the youth movement.
DECISION: LET JACKSON LEAVE
Do you guys agree? Sound off in the comments.