As NFL Free Agency rapidly approaches, teams around the league are starting to set the table for making splashes that hopefully pay off when it counts. Not every team is going to be spending top dollar to make additions, though, a category the Tampa Bay Buccaneers won’t be falling into for yet another offseason.
Tampa Bay is still working its way out of the salary cap snarl that was created when the team went all-in during the Tom Brady years. Jason Licht and his crew have masterfully navigated out of choppy waters while keeping the team competitive, but they’ve done that by spending wisely and making smart splashes.
We could see that happen again this offseason.
There are signings the Bucs need to make, like bargain shopping for edge rush help and secondary support, and doing so will require clearing some cap space. Usually that means cutting players lose, but Tampa Bay could make some trades to get a little more than money back for their trouble.
Vikings could be a perfect trade partner for Buccaneers and Jamel Dean
Bleacher Report threw out a handful of hypothetical trades that would help teams clear cap space, which naturally included the Bucs. Jordan Whitehead has already been released as a cap casualty but Jamel Dean’s name has been circled as someone the team might move on from for at least a month.
Moving Dean isn’t something the Bucs need to do, but if they were to let him go to save some cap space then trading him to the Minnesota Vikings — as B/R suggested — makes a ton of sense for everyone involved.
Releasing Dean saves money, but moving him in a trade could net the Bucs a valuable draft pick that Jason Licht could use to either help replace him or fortify another area of the roster. We saw Tampa Bay do this last offseason when Carlton Davis III was traded to Detroit for a draft pick that ended up becoming Jalen McMillan.
Minnesota doesn’t have a ton of draft capital but the Vikings do have a need at cornerback that Dean could help fill. Much like Davis and the Lions last season, the Vikings would be taking a flier on a guy with CB1 upside for the cost of a Day 3 pick.
The big question here is whether the Vikings would be willing to part with one of the few picks they have to land Dean. Minnesota does seem to be addicted to finding veteran fliers at key positions — whether it’s quarterback or cornerback — which suggests Dean is a fit for Brian Flores’ defense.
If the Vikings did make a move for Dean, flipping either their third round pick or fifth round pick could get a deal done. That might seem a little light on value but the alternative is letting Dean go for nothing and we’ve seen what Licht can do with lottery ticket picks late in the draft.
Of course, there’s also an outcome where Dean remains in Tampa Bay for another season. The Bucs don’t have to let him go, and the same logic for betting on upside in Minnesota applies here. Ideally Dean returns to an elite level and plays the entire season without running into bad injury luck, which would give the Bucs a great one-two punch in the secondary alongside Zyon McCollum and whoever is brought in from the draft.
That’s wishful thinking that has burned the Bucs before, and it leads to the same logic that prompted the Davis trade last year. If Dean’s time in Tampa Bay is truly over, then finding a way to get something more than just cap space back for him seems like a smart route to explore.
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