For the first time since Tom Brady retired in early 2023, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are finally starting crawl out of the dead money hole they dug to win a Super Bowl. There's still not a ton of money to go around, though, as the Bucs are projected to have around $11 million in cap space which doesn't factor in what it will cost to sign this year's draft class.
Still, it's $1 million more than the cap space Tampa Bay had last year and we saw what they were able to do with that sort of flexibility. Bringing back Mike Evans, Antoine Winfield Jr., and Baker Mayfield proved the team can find ways to make deals work even on a tight budget, which is magic that will once again be needed this offseason.
The Bucs have over 20 players who will be free agents when the new league year begins in March, and for a variety of reasons it seems a few have almost certainly played their last game with the team.
Buccaneers players who probably won't be back next year
Jamel Dean, CB
There’s a pretty decent chance that Jamel Dean ends up being a cap casualty this offseason. Not only has he failed to live up to his big contract that he signed back in 2023, but the Bucs could create some much-needed cap space by letting him go.
Either cutting or trading Dean frees up about $8.4 million in space, which could be used to bring back the next guy on this list. If it’s a question of finding a way to keep Chris Godwin or Dean, the decision doesn’t feel like a hard one for the Bucs to make.
It really feels similar to the situation with Carlton Davis III last year where the Bucs needed to save some money and both sides benefited from a break. Like Davis, Dean is a good player when he’s playing up to expectations but it’s been awhile since he’s reliably been a CB1 option for the Bucs and moving on might be better for the team — and Dean — long term than sticking things out.
Chris Godwin, WR
This one is firmly on the fence, as there are worlds where the Bucs bring Chris Godwin back as much as there are ones where he gets offers from other teams he can't refuse and Tampa Bay can't match.
One thing that might be writing on the wall for Godwin's departure is the late-season development of Jalen McMillan. He was drafted to potentially replace Mike Evans but there was also logic to suggest the Bucs selecting him was meant as protection against potentially losing Godwin as well.
With Evans back on a two-year deal, it seems more likely that McMillan will be the new WR2 next year if something can't be worked out with Godwin.
Keep in mind it's not a foregone conclusion that Godwin is going to leave. Similar rumors of uncertainty were swirling around Evans and Baker Mayfield this time last year as well, but both ended up coming back on deals that paid them well but also skewed toward being 'team-friendly' as well. Godwin getting that same sort of middle-ground deal feels very realistic considering how beloved he is by everyone in the building but also how much he loves being in Tampa Bay.
The idea of returning from injury to a situation that has Baker Mayfield, Mike Evans, Bucky Irving, and Jalen McMillan working to make your life easier, plus potentially getting a full year with Liam Coen, seems too good to pass up. It all comes down to whether Godwin gets whisked away by a big money offer, but there's no guaruntee he'll be getting those offers after coming off an injury-shortened season.
It's too early to definitively tell what will happen, however right now it's a safe assumption that Godwin won't pass up an offer elsewhere that he can't refuse but a return to Tampa Bay isn't out of the question.
Anthony Nelson, EDGE
The Buccaneers pass rush will be the No. 1 thing the team tries address this offseason, which means time and resources will be spent to fix things up. A lack of pressure off the edge hurt the defense in a big way this year, and Anthony Nelson might find himself on the chopping block as a result.
He's finishing the final year of $10 million that feels a bit rich for a rotational guy, which is all he seems to be with the Bucs. Nelson could return as depth, but the Bucs will look to add serious fire power on the edge this offseason and any funds that could be used on Nelson might be spent elsewhere.
Joe Tryon-Shoyinka, OLB/EDGE
One of the biggest letdowns this year was Joe Tryon-Shoyinka, who failed to show the type of improvement that would make the Bucs sorry they didn't pick up the fifth year of his rookie contract. He's a free agent who could return but he'd be doing so as a former top draft pick that figures to be not much more than rotational depth.
He finished the year with fewer sacks and tackles than he had last year, despite playing in only two fewer games than he did in 2023. It was a bad year for him to regress the way he did as he had a golden opportunity to help fill a pass rush void but ended up with just two sacks on the year and hardly any pressure.
This could be a Devin White situation in that Tryon-Shoyinka cuts his losses in Tampa Bay and tries to reinvent himself in another defense. Pass rush is perhaps the top need the Bucs have this offseason, and Tryon-Shoyinka seems to have played himself out of a meaningful role.
Chase Edmonds, RB
It was a really bad year for Chase Edmonds to wind up on IR, as his already dwindling role with the Bucs completely evaporated over the course of the season. Edmonds figured to fill the RB3 role and compete with Bucky Irving for touches before the season, but that's not even a contest anymore. Irving was one of the most exciting rookies in the league and eventually took over the RB1 from Rachaad White.
Sean Tucker stepped up in a big way as well, proving he can be the RB3 of the future for Tampa Bay, which essentially rendered Edmonds' useless for the Bucs.
He might get a look as a training camp back who competes for an RB4 role, but he's been played out of a spot anywhere near the top of the depth chart, and he's probably best off trying his luck somewhere else this offseason.
Kyle Trask, QB
Not to the degree of importance, but Kyle Trask's situation is similar to Chris Godwin's in that his future in Tampa Bay seems to be firmly on the fence. He was supposed to be developed as a potential successor to Tom Brady but the fact that he seems to have made little growth since 2021 suggests his time with the Bucs might be over.
He has almost no shot of being the guy to take over for Baker and there's zero chance he competes for a starting job anytime soon. If he wants to be a starter, Trask is best off trying to compete elsewhere, but if he's smart he'll try to stick around and start settling into his role as a career backup.
There's no shame in that, and if his ceiling is being nothing more than what Blaine Gabbert was to the Bucs then so be it. He's spent two seasons behind Baker Mayfield so there's chemistry in the QB room, and he might be wise to start accepting and leaning into the role of his sidekick on the sideline.
It also comes down to whether the Buccaneers view him as valuable in that role or if they prefer to go out and sign a veteran to work with Baker and cut their losses with Trask.
K.J. Britt, LB
Linebacker depth was tested in a big way this season, and the lights were a little too bright for K.J. Britt. Part of his failure was due to circumstance, as he's a backup who was thrust into a starting role due to injuries, which was a theme this year for the Buccaneers across the entire defense.
He showed some promise last year when he replaced Devin White as a starter, but that proved to be more about how bad White was and less about the promise of Britt's future. Now he's a free agent who won't be brought back as a starter in Tampa Bay but could return as rotational depth.
The Bucs are in a tough spot moving forward as far as having a plan for what happens after Lavonte David retires. Yaya Diaby is the only lock to be a key piece of the future and Tampa Bay could look to the draft to find someone to run alongside him. If this past year was an audition for Britt to be that guy, he failed to give the team a tough decision to make as far as making him a starter.
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