The NFL will begin a new league year on March 15. There are teams that can spend a lot of money in players for having a big cap space, although other franchises have to be more measured. Tampa Bay Buccaneers is precisely in that group.
Acquiring Tom Brady in free agency of the 2020 season was a move that changed their history. Except for a lack of results last year, they have been a top team. But keeping elite players in the roster requires movements that will have to be paid at some point.
The salary has Tampa Bay with no margin in this offseason. They can’t afford any big name of the market since they won’t be able to even retain some of their own free agents. There is one player that has been a staple of the team that could be leaving.
Who might leave Tampa Bay in free agency?
General manager Jason Licht doesn’t have much flexibility to make moves in order to improve the roster. The Buccaneers are last in cap space being almost 48 million over the limit, according to Spotrac. One of their impending free agents is also a defensive leader whose price may be too high for them.
The star player that Tampa Bay is expected to lose is Lavonte David. His presence in the middle of the defense has been a key to their success, although they might need a replacement. David will test free agency, per Ian Rapoport of NFL Network. Both sides still can come to an agreement, but the Buccaneers don’t have enough space to pay the LB his true value.
One thing that could make it happen is his intention to remain there. “I’d love to retire as a Buccaneer. Getting to play in the same building my whole career like guys like Ronde Barber and Derrick Brooks, that’d be amazing”, he said in an interview with WDAE last month.
