The Tampa Bay Buccaneers know they need to lock star quarterback Baker Mayfield down to a new long term deal at the latest after the 2026 NFL season ends, and while there are some Bucs fans who would like to see Mayfield play out the final year of his deal before earning his big payday, there are many more fans who just want this saga done with.
While Mayfield has said that he and the Buccaneers are far apart in contract talks when it comes to the dollars and cents, Jason Licht and the Bucs organization appear to be both optimistic and fully committed to making a deal happen.
In the meantime, though, Licht does have another big worry. Mayfield is the pillar on offense and needs a new deal, and now his biggest pillar on defense, especially after the retirement of potential Hall of Famer inside linebacker Lavonte David, wants a new contract, too.
Vita Vea wants a contract extension
Tampa Bay Buccaneers superstar nose tackle Vita Vea is one of the best in the business, but he is massively underrated. And at a salary of $17.75 million next season, he is also massively underpaid. While that may seem like a lot of money on paper, Vea is one of the best defensive tackles in the game but is paid 19th among all interior defensive linemen in salary next season.
Vea has been missing out on offseason practices, and while head coach Todd Bowles says it is much ado about nothing, NFL insiders are singing a different tune. Appearing on an episode of The Insiders on the NFL Network, Mike Garafolo said that the veteran defensive lineman not showing up to the Buccaneers mandatory minicamp this summer has everything to do with money.
From The Insiders on @nflnetwork: #Buccaneers DT Vita Vea wasn’t practicing at minicamp today and hasn’t been for OTAs in the spring. I’m told it’s related to the two-time Pro Bowler’s contract, as Vea is entering the final year of his deal from 4+ years ago. pic.twitter.com/KMd1MzQAid
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) June 17, 2026
Garafolo said, “My understanding is the contract is playing into this. Again, from my understanding, sources have told me that the fact that he is in the final year of his deal, hasn’t gotten an extension to his point, is part of the reason that he is not participating.”
Vita Vea is in the final year of his contract with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and he has more than earned an extension and a raise. He had an even better 2025 season than Baker Mayfield did, though as a nose tackle, he gets half the attention the quarterback does. At 31 years old, Vea is not going to get a huge contract in terms of years, but a salary above $20 million per season for a few more years seems to be reasonable, given Vea is showing no signs of decline.
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