Saturday evening, the NFL world heard a bombshell report surface as Indianapolis Colts star running back had requested a trade. Already, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have been listed as a possible destination for the stud rusher.
How did the situation come about? Well, the nature of the running back position has Taylor worried, obviously, just like many of his peers. Taylor met with Jim Irsay and, after the meeting, decided it was best for him to ask to be dealt.
While Irsay has denied being willing to trade Taylor, ever, the possibility still remains. Taylor has every right to sit out and keep himself healthy, or of course, bet on himself and enter free agency next year. But, what if the Bucs decided to get involved in these trade discussions?
It seems highly unlikely the Bucs would trade for Taylor, as they have a lot of faith in Rachaad White going into his first year as the workhorse. But, they could put together a couple of attractive packages. Let's get into them.
The Bucs could start by building a Jonathan Taylor trade package around Mike Evans
According to Over The Cap, there are, realistically, three main players the Bucs could trade in order to have enough money to extend Taylor, and those are: Mike Evans, Shaquil Barrett and Devin White. Yes, the Bucs would have to extend Taylor if they opted to trade for him, as would any team. Otherwise, what's the point of a one-year rental, especially for a Bucs team that likely isn't winning a title this year?
This first deal doesn't include much in terms of draft capital, but instead would bank on the possibility of Evans also being extended in Indianapolis to be Anthony Richardson's go-to guy for the foreseeable future.
If this wasn't enough, the Bucs could add onto a package like this.