The Buccaneers surprised a lot of people when they cut young, talented wide receiver Jaelon Darden. Here is why they had to pull the trigger.
The Buccaneers cutting Jaelon Darden at this point in the season was a bit of a surprise to everyone.
It’s not like Darden has really been popping on the field, but it is still a bit out of the blue for a team to cut a player that they traded up to select in the fourth round after less than two full seasons.
Still, here we are, and a lot of people are asking why it got to this point that has apparently caught the eyes of the coaching staff more than once.
In the end, it appears that one of the biggest issues for Darden was getting his talent on the practice field to translate to games.
The coaching staff gushed over Darden at every turn, yet the player that showed up on the field never seemed to reach that lofty standard.
Darden being unable to compete on offense and make even the smallest impact in year one was a major red flag, even if the roster was deep and there was a lot of talent ahead of him.
Being unable to do anything in year two with this depleted depth chart and constant injuries was the kiss of death. Darden had every opportunity to make it on the field and find a way to impact games, yet on the bench and special teams he remained.
The Buccaneers just couldn’t condone keeping such a player on their roster any longer with such a lack of production in the most important area, so the decision ended up being the right one in the end, even if it was a surprise.
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