DE William Gholston
Yes, even with the devastating neck injury to Jason Pierre-Paul and the uncertainty surrounding Gerald McCoy, William Gholston still finds himself on the edge of the Buccaneers roster. Gholston is set to make $3.75 million this season, a price tag too steep for a team struggling with cap space; especially for a player declining at the rate Gholston has.
None of Gholston’s contract is guaranteed, so it would make sense for the Buccaneers to move on from a guy who scored just a 34.7 PFF grade in 2018, ranking him well below average. Gholston managed only one sack, one tackle for loss and seven quarterback hits in 2018 for the Buccaneers.
Even with the depth along the defensive line nearly non-existent, Gholston carries a non-guaranteed contract and has been quite the underperformer since receiving his five-year extension in 2017. If the Buccaneers were to move on from him, they would save the $3.75 million this year, $4.75 million next year, and $5.5 million the year after that.
With the versatility of rookie Anthony Nelson and Carl Nassib to play both 3-4 defensive end or on the edge, the Buccaneers should be able to compensate for the loss of Gholston in order to see the cap savings currently allocated to him. Rookie Terry Beckner Jr. would also be expected to pick up some slack.