William Gholston is returning to the Buccaneers on a five year deal.
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The Buccaneers are hanging onto one of their depth players along the defensive line. According to a report coming in from ESPN, the Bucs have agreed to terms on a new contract with William Gholston.
According to the report, the deal is for five years, $37 million, with $13.5 million guaranteed. This was Gholston’s second year as a starter along the line, playing the second most snaps to Gerald McCoy.
Last season, Gholston notched a career high 3.5 sacks to go along with 50 total tackles, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery. He was active for every game of 2015 and recorded 67 total tackles to go along with three sacks that year.
This is a solid deal for both the Bucs and Gholston. Gholston gets a raise to an average salary of $7.4 million per year (per Spotrac). The Bucs get to hang onto a player in Gholston that has become quite the run stuffer. He may not me the flashy pass rusher that Noah Spence and Robert Ayers can be, but he does a great deal of the dirty work. In addition to the stats noted above, Gholston was credited with six run stuffs in 2016 (per ESPN).
The deal, being a reasonable one, doesn’t take the Bucs out of the running for players like Calais Campbell, who they have shown interest in. They still have the cap space to have upward mobility with other free agents, so this doesn’t alter the plans much at all.
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All in all, it’s a good move for both sides.