Are the Buccaneers going to have a free agent problem?

Can the Buccaneers survive the free agent fallout that was created by the departure of quarterback Tom Brady and others over the past few weeks?

Tampa, we have a problem. The Buccaneers are going to struggle in 2022. Is this news to anyone? Losing a guy like Tom Brady could take years to recover from, and this current offseason doesn’t show any signs of going in the Tampa’s favor.

The Bucs largely made it as far as they did due to a robust free agent surplus that was already available for Brady. Jason Licht and Bruce Arians constructed a great roster that was still able to bring free agents in, but lets be real; who really wants to come to Tampa?

The Bucs aren’t one of those large-market teams that always gets guys to come. They needed a perfect roster and the greatest quarterback of all time to have more guys coming in and staying than leaving, but that is changing now.

Brady is gone, and who is going to come play here now? Does Blaine Gabbert have that draw? How about Trask? What about an offensive line that may only retain two players from this past season?

None of these facts make the Buccaneers look like an attractive free agent destination, and that only got worse today with the retirement of Ali Marpet.

While Licht and the front office can scramble to keep some of these guys in pewter and red, the odds are stacked against them. Most of the departing free agents for the Bucs can get much more money and a better chance to win with other teams, specifically Chris Godwin, Jordan Whitehead, Leonard Fournette, and Alex Cappa on the open market.

The Buccaneers can’t compete on price or the ability to fight for a championship again in year one. Some guys may stay for a love of the team, but that decision isn’t in their own best interest nor is it a decision that fans should have any say in.

The coming weeks will be extremely revealing in how widespread this problem is, but we aren’t very hopeful.

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