It didn't take long for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to dive into the free agency market after taking care of some internal business.
Heading into the offseason the biggest thing the Buccaneers needed to do was re-sign Antoine Winfield Jr., Baker Mayfield, and Mike Evans -- among others. Those three boxes were checked off before the legal tampering period opened, but Jason Licht didn't stop there when it came to bringing guys back.
Chase Edmonds, Chase McLaughlin, and Lavonte David were all key players Licht highlighted at the NFL Combine as players he'd throw a boat parade if he could re-sign. We'll be patiently waiting for the parade route as those guys all reached deals to return to the Bucs.
Now Tampa Bay has turned its attention to the open market, but the focus remains on bringing former players back.
Buccaneers dip into free agency and sign Jordan Whitehead: Full details and grade
According to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, the Buccaneers are bringing back former safety Jordan Whitehead on a two-year deal. It's an insanely good deal for both sides, as Whitehead lands a deal in a pretty saturated safety market, while Tampa Bay only needed to pay $9 million to make it happen.
Year | Salary |
|---|---|
2024 | $4.5M |
2025 | $4.5M |
Potential Bonus Money | $1.5M |
Max Value | $10.5M |
It's a reunion for the two sides, as Whitehead was drafted by Licht back in 2018 and helped the Bucs win a Super Bowl before leaving to join the New York Jets in 2022. He's spent the last two seasons in Robert Saleh's defense, which is wisdom that he brings back with him to Tampa Bay.
A deal with Whitehead seemed to be simmering while the rest of the free agent market settled. It just made too much sense to bring him back and help add to a very thin safety room; he's already familiar with Todd Bowles' system and has leveled up his game over the last few seasons.
As Jenna Laine pointed out, the Bucs never wanted to let Whitehead go in the first place. He wasn't part of the mass exodus the team needed to go through last offseason to get back under the cap but he was part of cuts that had to be made to afford another run at Tom Brady leading the team to a Super Bowl.
The Bucs never wanted to let Jordan Whitehead go in the first place. I can tell you that there were some very sad people in the building at One Buc when that happened. Huge to get that pairing of him and Antoine Winfield Jr. together again for Todd Bowles’ defense.
— JennaLaineESPN (@JennaLaineESPN) March 13, 2024
Last year Whitehead started the season with a three interception game against the Buffalo Bills, a performance that helped the Jets pull off an upset win after losing Aaron Rodgers to a season-ending injury. Meanwhile, the Bucs struggled with Ryan Neal at safety eventually needing to push him out of the rotation late in the year.
Safety was a big need for the Bucs this offseason and they addressed it in the best possible way. Whitehead is a top guy on the market, he signed on a team-friendly deal, and the team has brought back a key piece of its Super Bowl defense.
Grade: A