Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Offseason plan to make the playoffs
By Rob Leeds
As far as free agents to bring back are concerned, the Bucs have no choice but to bring Shaquil Barrett back. How this will be done will be tricky but the Bucs’ hands are tied.
The Buccaneers have the option to sign Barrett to a multi-year extension if they believe that he can continue to produce at his current level or they can choose to use the franchise tag if they are more unsure. As it stands now the Bucs should be comfortable with a longer extension and they have a better use for the franchise tag.
As polarizing as he may be, the best chance for winning in 2020 lies with Jameis Winston. Philip Rivers has almost no upside over Jameis as they currently stand and it will be incredibly hard to bring Tom Brady to Tampa Bay.
While the relationship between Winston and the front office appears to be in a precarious situation, if Bruce Arians truly wants to win in 2020 they will franchise tag Winston for one more year and build up the rest of the team.
It seems as though it should be difficult, albeit not impossible, for Winston to match his interception numbers from 2019 in 2020 and any improvement could turn the tide in some of those closer games. It also should be noted that once the Buccaneer defense improved, the damage caused by the interceptions in some situations started to diminish.
This move would be loved by some and hated by others but either way, it should be understood that Jameis has a higher chance of winning in a Bruce Arians offense in 2020 than a player like Philip Rivers or Jordan Love.
The final notable free agent that the Bucs need to bring back is Jason Pierre-Paul. JPP is an excellent bookend alongside Shaq Barret for the Buccaneer pass rush and Tampa Bay would struggle to find equal talent in this draft class of edge players.
Pierre-Paul has proved that he can still play at a very high level and the Bucs still need him to maintain their successful pass rush.