4 players who already look like total bargains for the Buccaneers this offseason
By Brad Smith
In the NFL, getting production from the quarterback position is one of the key ways to become one of the top teams in the NFL.
Oftentimes, having a top-tier quarterback comes with a large price tag, as shown by last season. In 2023, seven of the top 12 highest-paid quarterbacks led their team to the playoffs, including Detroit's Jared Goff, Baltimore's Lamar Jackson, Philadelphia's Jalen Hurts, and Kansas City's Patrick Mahomes.
That said, teams are just as capable of winning with a young and cheaper option at quarterback. Take Houston's CJ Stroud, who led the Texans to a 10-7 record, the AFC South divisional title, and to the AFC Divisional round, all while making just $9.0 million, the 24th most in the NFL.
The same can be said for several other teams, like the Packers, Jaguars, and the Dolphins who still had quarterbacks on their rookie deals. Such an occurrence offers that team a major advantage in building a well-rounded roster.
Over the past two seasons, Licht has acted out this philosophy, adding ten starting-caliber players in their two recent draft classes. This past draft, Tampa Bay added Graham Barton, Chris Braswell, Tykee Smith, and Jalen McMillan, all of whom will play key roles at their respective positions this year.
For Licht and head coach Todd Bowles, players like Barton, Braswell, Smith, and McMillan on their rookie deals are cheap, quality talent to work with and develop and win with for several years. In addition, it allows the Bucs to use their money to re-sign their top players in free agency and not have to overpay for an aging veteran to fill a position.
While Barton, Braswell, Smith, and McMillan would be considered "bargains" because of their cheap contracts, none of them have played a single snap in the NFL, so it would be a little premature to make that claim. Instead, these four players fit the mold as a true bargain player that has been great and is still relatively cheap for Tampa Bay in terms of other players leaguewide.
Yaya Diaby, OLB
In the third round of the 2023 draft, the Buccaneers took a flier on Diaby, an explosive pass rusher from Louisville. Even with the pass-rushing ability of incumbent linebackers Shaq Barrett and Devin White, Diaby enjoyed a steady rookie season with 38 tackles, 12 tackles for loss, eight QB hits, 7.5 sacks, and two fumble recoveries in 515 defensive snaps and 17 games.
Among all rookies, Diaby's 7.5 sacks was third-most, and even tied Adrian Clayborn for the second-most sacks by a rookie in Tampa Bay franchise history, trailing Santana Dotson's 10.0 in 1992. Now with Barrett and White having left Tampa Bay in free agency, Diaby projects to have an even greater role for the Bucs this season, and at a significantly cheaper price.
Per Spotrac, Diaby will have a base salary of $998,428 this season and an extremely favorable salary cap hit of $1,242,139. In addition, Diaby is No. 27 in terms of the highest-paid Bucs on the team, and even trails reserve offensive tackle Justin Skule.
If Diaby continues to ascend and hits double-digit sacks soon, then his price tag will increase tremendously. Even so, Diaby is only set to make $4.4 million over the next three seasons, giving the Buccaneers a cheap and young source of production to pair with interior defensive tackle Calijah Kancey.