Do the Tampa Bay Buccaneers regret paying Donovan Smith?

One article identified left tackle Donovan Smith as the player with the worst contract on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers; do they regret paying him?

This past offseason, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and left tackle Donovan Smith came to an agreement on a contract extension worth $41.25 million over the next three seasons. Bleacher Report’s Brad Gagnon thinks this deal has become the worst contract that the Buccaneers carry in 2019.

Gagnon took to the task of identifying each team’s worst contract, and he landed on Smith for the Buccaneers as he questions, “Should the consistently shaky 2015 second-round pick really be one of the five highest-paid left tackles in the league?” This is the way the market was trending this offseason, and Smith was able to capitalize on the set price that free agent left tackles are receiving on the open market.

Smith is under contract in Tampa Bay through the 2021 season, and can come off the books after he gets his $27 million guaranteed throughout the next two seasons. The Buccaneers are hoping that their second round investment pays off as they have now made a bigger investment in Smith.

For his performance in 2018, Pro Football Focus (subscription required) graded Smith barely above the above average threshold at 66.4. This was a bit higher than the past two seasons, so the Buccaneers are hoping the trend upward continues for Smith and his development.

Without a doubt, Smith must improve as he has surrendered a ton of pressures in just about every year of his career, as the Buccaneers’ offensive line has struggled as a whole. If the Buccaneers hope to get out of the bottom of the league in rushing offense and establish a more balanced attack, then the offensive line, Smith included, must step up in 2019.