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Pewter Report’s Scott Reynolds answers your questions. @PewterReport This week’s Twitter account can be found at Bucs Mailbag. Submit your questions to the Bucs Mailbag weekly via Twitter using the hashtag #PRMailbag. Here are the Bucks questions we chose to answer in this week’s issue.
Question: Do you think the Bucs will sign a pass rusher in free agency or fix it in the NFL Draft? And which free agent pass rusher makes the most sense and why?
answer: At this point, we don’t know if the Bucs will sign a pass rusher in free agency before the 2024 NFL Draft for several reasons. First, most of the young, high-impact free agents such as Bryce Huff (Eagles), Daniel Hunter (Texans), and Jonathan Greenard (Vikings) signed elsewhere, while Josh Allen was signed elsewhere by the Jaguars. He was given the franchise tag by the Giants. Trade for Brian Burns.
Bucs head coach Todd Bowles and OLB Marquise Watts – Photo by Cliff Welch/PR
Baltimore’s Jadeveon Clowney and Kansas City’s Mike Dana had the most sacks last year among the remaining free agents. Clowney had his best season since 2019 with the Ravens last year with 9.5 sacks. Pro Football Focus has an 85.7 overall grade and an 81.2 pass rush grade. In 2022, he started 10 games for Cleveland and had just two sacks.
Clowney, who turns 31 this year, started 15 games last year and played in all 17 games, but has battled injuries in the past. He signed a one-year deal with the Ravens last year after missing 27 starts from 2019-22, when he played for the Seahawks (2019), Titans (2020) and Browns (2021-22).
Danna’s pass rush grade wasn’t very impressive at 61.1 PFF, but he won with effort and technique more than actual skill. The market is lukewarm for the former fifth-round pick despite winning two straight Super Bowls in one year of his career.
Tampa Bay also doesn’t appear to have any interest in former first-round pick Chase Young, who had 7.5 sacks last year from Washington to San Francisco. Young’s price is probably too high, and from what I’ve heard the Bucs won’t be able to afford him due to the fact that he has only recorded 16.5 sacks in his four-year NFL career and missed 24 games due to injury. He says he’s not crazy.
The second reason the Bucs might not sign a free agent edge rusher is that Tampa Bay will likely tackle the position in the 2024 NFL Draft. Whether it’s using the 26th first-round pick on outside linebacker prospects like UCLA’s Laiatu Latu or Penn State’s Chop Robinson, Penn State’s Adisa Isaac, Alabama’s Chris Braswell, Tampa Bay could also use Western Michigan’s Marshawn Kneeland. Ready to use premium pick at edge rusher.
Bucks OLB Yaya Diaby and Bills QB Josh Allen – Photo courtesy of USA Today
The third reason is that Tampa Bay’s cupboard isn’t exactly bare at the position, even though the team moved on from Shaq Barrett. YaYa Diaby showed a lot of promise in his rookie season, leading the team in sacks with 7.5.
However, Diaby needs to make the leap as a pure pass rusher, as his pass rush win percentage was just 6.7%, one of the lowest on the team. By comparison, Barrett posted a respectable 15%, while Joe Tryon Soyinka, who had five sacks, was actually better at 10.8%. Tryon Soyinka, the team’s first-round pick in 2021, will enter a contract year and be motivated to have a strong season, as will Anthony Nelson.
Tampa Bay is also eyeing undrafted free agent Marquise Watts, who played spot duty as a pass rusher last year, and last year’s sixth-round pick Jose Ramirez, who spent his rookie season on the practice squad. By not adding a veteran, the Bucks’ front office could be making way for more playing time for talented but unheralded young pass rushers who have emerged behind the scenes.
But hope is not a strategy. And if Tryon Soyinka or Nelson can have a breakout season as a starter, or if Watts or Ramirez can suddenly move up the strength chart, they could come back to bite the team. So it appears the Bucs are ready to draft another edge rusher in the first three rounds next month.
Question: Would you consider pursuing an edge rusher? Will Haason Reddick be an option?
Bucks RT Luke Godeke and Eagles OLB Haason Reddick – Photo by Cliff Welch/PR
answer: The Eagles won’t trade Josh Sweat due to contract restructuring, but Haason Reddick could still be on the move. But I don’t think Tampa Bay would be interested for several reasons. First, Redick turns 30 this year and is on track to earn an average annual salary of more than $15 million. He is in his contract year, and any team trading for him would need to sign him to an extension to make the contract worthwhile. Otherwise, the team would be wasting a draft pick by renting Redick for a year.
The Bucks saw what happened when they gave Shaq Barrett, who played on the franchise tag as a 28-year-old in 2020, a hefty contract extension worth $17 million per year when he turned 29. Barrett tore his Achilles tendon when he turned 30 during the 2022 season. And his skills declined. It’s usually not a good idea to invest a lot of money into a player whose career will end after age 30. I can’t see the Bucks trading for Redick.
Redick didn’t impress in the two games he played against Tampa Bay last year. He was completely shut out, not even registering a tackle by Bucs right tackle Luke Goedeke in Week 3. And in the Eagles’ playoff loss at Raymond James Stadium, he had just one tackle and was shut out by Goedeke again.
Redick did not record a sack in either game against Tampa Bay in 2021 while in Carolina. In fact, he totaled just five tackles in two games and was unable to make a difference in the Bucks’ blowout win over the Panthers that year.
That’s not to say Redick isn’t a pass rusher. he. Redick has 58 total sacks, marking his fourth consecutive season with double-digit sacks. However, he has been on the trade block for several weeks and has not yet been moved. That’s very easy to understand. Given his age and salary demands, he’s not in demand despite his skill set.
Question: Is Kevin Zeitler an option at guard for the Bucks?
Bucs G Sua Opeta – Photo courtesy of USA Today
answer: Kevin Zeitler signed a three-year contract with the Ravens worth $22 million (average $7.5 million) and became a free agent at age 34. According to Pro Football Focus, Zeitler earned a respectable grade of 69.3, including a pass blocking grade of 82.5. But Zeitler only had a run-blocking grade of 59.7 last year with the run-first Ravens. That’s kind of telling.
The Bucks hope to improve their ability to run the ball in 2024 after finishing last in rushing in 2022 and second-to-last in rushing last year. Given Zeitler’s age and diminished run-blocking skills (67.5 grade in 2022), I don’t think the Bucks have much interest. Factor in the fact that he’s probably looking for a salary close to what he earned in Baltimore and is likely pricing himself off Tampa Bay’s free agent wish list.
The Bucks had already signed several younger, cheaper guard prospects in Ben Bredeson (26) and Sua Opeta (27) a year after signing 30-year-old Matt Feiler, whose skills had declined. ing. Additionally, the 2024 NFL Draft is filled with interior offensive linemen. I suspect the Bucks will spend a premium pick on a guard in April.
Question: In your opinion, what kind of free agent business do you think the Bucks have left?
Bucks GM Jason Licht – Photo by Adam Slivon/PR
answer: Roster holes that can be filled in free agency theoretically take away a need that would have to be addressed in the NFL Draft. That was certainly the case at strong safety when the Bucks re-signed Jordan Whitehead, eliminating the need to find a starting-caliber player at the position in the draft.
Finding an edge rusher in free agency would be ideal. Especially since there isn’t much talent in the 2024 NFL Draft and there isn’t much depth at the position. But the Bucs can’t force it either, and only have a few decent pass rushers.
Tampa Bay is interested in Tavierre Thomas, nickelback who played in Houston The last few seasons. Signing him, along with outside cornerback Bryce Hall, reduces the need to address cornerbacks early in the draft and allows the Bucs to focus on their trenches at guard, center, and outside linebacker. It will be.
Keep in mind that there are still two waves of free agents left for Tampa Bay general manager Jason Richt to explore. The first is after the 2024 NFL Draft, when teams upgrade their rosters with players they think are younger, cheaper, and better. As a result, some veterans could be made expendable or released in cap-reduction moves.
The next wave will come during training camp and the preseason, when some players will be released on waiver wire or become available in trades. Richt signed Karl Nassib on the waiver wire just before Opening Day in 2018 and was a starter for two years in Tampa Bay. The Bucs also signed running back Leonard Fournette just before the 2020 season, and he played a key role in Tampa Bay’s Super Bowl LV victory and 13 wins the following season.
Question: How much cap room do you currently have?
Bucks assistant GM Mike Greenberg – Photo by Cliff Welch/PR
answer: according to OverTheCap.com, This is the most reliable website for salary cap calculations and the Bucks have $9,390,943 in cap room. But while this includes the release of Russell Gage and the recent signings of Chase McLaughlin, Chase Edwards, Greg Gaines, and Jordan Whitehead, Bryce Hall, Sua Opeta, and Ben The new contract with Bredeson is not included.
The one-year deals for Hall, Opeta, and Bredeson are modest in nature, so it’s estimated that the Bucks will earn around $5 million when these deals close. Tampa Bay could always create more cap room by signing Antoine to a contract extension for Winfield Jr. and Tristan Wirfs, which would lower their 2024 cap numbers to $17,123,000 and $18,606,582, respectively.
The Bucks could also free up additional cap space by turning a portion of the base salaries of Vita Vea ($15.5 million) and Jamel Dean ($12 million) into roster bonuses. Don’t worry about the Bucs getting a little tighter against the cap, as assistant general manager Mike Greenberg will only free up cap space as needed.
