Price For “Honey Badger” Rising
March 11th, 2019
Bull market.
A lot of Bucs fans want the Bucs to upgrade from fan favorite Chris Conte, inconsistent Justin Evans and heavy-hitting Jordan Whitehead at safety.
(Don’t get Joe started on new safety M.J. Stewart).
And a guy Bucs fans are connecting dots with is Texans safety Tyrann Mathieu, who played for Bucs coach Bucco Bruce Arians in Arizona.
It’s a logical fit. But financially, well, take a deep breath Bucs fans. The cash-strapped Bucs likely are staring at a shiny, exceptional brand new 2019 F-150 pickup at Bill Currie Ford but only have the budget for a 2004 Ford Ranger with 198,000 miles on it.
The Texans want Honey Badger back bad and have a deal on the table to keep him, per Albert Breer of theMMQB.com.
The Texans offered S Tyrann Mathieu a long-term deal in excess of $9.5 million per year to stay in Houston, per sources.
Team wants to keep him. He’d like to stay. He’ll test the market first.
— Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) March 11, 2019
So if the Bucs want to get Honey Badger, they are likely going to have to pay him Kwon Alexander money (allegedly).
The question is, if the Bucs pick up Honey Badger, who gets tossed off the pirate ship to make room for him?
It’s a buyer’s market out there for safeties. Joe would be slightly surprised if the Bucs, with little change in their pockets, get into a bidding war for Honey Badger.
March 11th, 2019 at 12:41 pm
hand him the money Djax was making! He was in Houston for one year.. does he have tons of loyalty to them already? or would playing for Arians have just as much pull? Need to send Arians on a recruiting mission to secure the honey badger.
March 11th, 2019 at 12:47 pm
And if we trade Djax salary for Honey Badger…….then what money do we use for all of the other FAs we need along with the new draft class?
Pass on $10mil per year players………
March 11th, 2019 at 12:53 pm
Licht’s GM legacy coming home to roost….
March 11th, 2019 at 12:53 pm
we definitely have enough flexibility to target one 10mil dollar player. were not bringing back Kwon or Hump. Its about time for McCoy to be a cap casualty in favor for a younger probowl defensive player, which aligns well for this draft which should have us taking Dline early (likely in round 1), still cuts to useless players like Unrein, Gholston, Allen, our 3million dollar punter, old Gaurd Evans who doesnt play.. plenty of bad contracts to get rid to make room for a player like Mathieu
March 11th, 2019 at 12:55 pm
We have been this route. Win now. Pay high with no results. That is why we are in cap hell to start with.
March 11th, 2019 at 12:57 pm
i think the bucs will be looking for JPP and GMC to both restructure a little bit to create more wiggle room. where the team spends it is up to their roster assessment. as thin as the bucs now are at LB and at OL, i’d focus the marquee signing in the secondary where the bucs are far too inexperienced to shore up with a draft pick.
beyond that, i see the team filling in with former jets and cardinals that the coaches know they can count on to be mentally tough and accountable. both teams are undergoing scheme changes that will free up role players. if you can’t get talent get the guys who you know from experience respond to your coaching
March 11th, 2019 at 12:58 pm
I just don’t see it happening.
Guessing we will be 2nd / 3rd wave cheap vet type FA. Guys familiar with Bowles system to give depth and experience at CB/LB/S to go along with the youth in the secondary that is hopefully going to be developed further this year.
One or 2 vet CBs / one vet S / maybe 2 LBs
Get your OG/RG in round 2 or 3. Use most the rest the draft to rebuild the front 7.. i.e. Devin White + DL and take a flier on a RB at some point
March 11th, 2019 at 1:00 pm
“Credit Card Denied “…sorry Mr Licht …do you have another card ?
March 11th, 2019 at 1:00 pm
Bowels is secondary player and coach his entire career turned great DC turned HC. Evans and Whitehead have good potential and don’t know what MJ can do as a safety in his second year. Don’t spend $10 million on a safety when we have way too many other gaping holes.
March 11th, 2019 at 1:01 pm
thats is not why we are in “cap hell” at all. All the bad FA signing by licht that have been busts were signed to very flexible deals that were guaranteed for little more than one year.. Our Cap space is eaten up because we have a #1 pick QB in his last year of his backloaded deal, and we have a top 5 NFL WR who got locked down, thats 40 mil of our cap that has nothing to do with paying for overpriced FA busts. the next 2 highest guys are Gmac whos can be released at full savings, and JPP whos an NFL start that we traded for.. it is not often at all that Licht has signed a bonafide stuff in FA, instead hes overpaid backups whove shined in limited time on their team so Licht pays them like their ready to blossom as a starter. The only signed stud he paid for has been Djax and its not Licht or Djax’s fault that it didnt work out.. our 20mil dollar QB simply cant hit him on the very route the Djax makes his money on..
March 11th, 2019 at 1:01 pm
(my last post was in response to DBS)
March 11th, 2019 at 1:06 pm
This was moderately funny @Joes…and pretty fitting.
“The cash-strapped Bucs likely are staring at a shiny, exceptional brand new 2019 F-150 pickup at Bill Currie Ford but only have the budget for a 2004 Ford Ranger with 198,000 miles on it.”
Marcus Gilchrist, here we come.
Go Bucs! Land Quinnen!
March 11th, 2019 at 1:21 pm
Derwin James?….oh wait we only had two chances to make that happen.
March 11th, 2019 at 1:37 pm
Do not pay that money, thats over paying!!!!! Doesn´t make ANY sense…..I would lve that player with the bucs uniform, but that´s not the price……..ridiculous…….There are some other cheaper and good options……
March 11th, 2019 at 1:39 pm
Stop with the no budget to do anything talk. You know the Bucs can create cap room for anyone and d jack being cut is just one move alone that can do it
March 11th, 2019 at 1:57 pm
“Derwin James 2019 annual Salary is 2.8 milly…..
oh yeah Buc sheep claim he wouldnt play well in Tampa”
Kobe Faker
March 11th, 2019 at 3:04 pm
We MIGHT make one splash FA signing, might! I just don’t see us breaking the bank for the Badger. The guy’s had 2 full seasons since joining the NFL 6 years ago. $9+ million for a safety is a big pricetag.
March 11th, 2019 at 3:10 pm
“oh yeah Buc sheep claim he wouldnt play well in Tampa”
I wouldn’t necessarily say that. I’m just saying I very much doubt he makes the same impact as he did with the Chargers – a team that had a very creative defensive coaching staff and established playmakers all around Derwin James in the front 7 and secondary. They used him in a creative hybrid S/LB/CB role that we didn’t feature at all. That defense was literally completely built to where he was the last piece added, vs being one of the only pieces if he would have gone to Tampa.
I hope Vea & James have great careers
March 11th, 2019 at 3:40 pm
Yes it would be a logical fit IF we had the money to afford Honey Badger. We don’t. Sign yet high-dollar FA like Mathieu and we will have officially screwed the pooch. Come back to earth Joe.
March 11th, 2019 at 3:44 pm
“Fan favorite Chris Conte”????
He died on 9/24/2018. Let the poor soul rest in peace already.
March 11th, 2019 at 4:12 pm
I’m not overly concerned that Honey Badger priced himself out of Tampa.
Moving Stewart from CB to S, seems a natural fit & replacement for Conte. (Plenty on here said he’s was too slow 2 combine/ACC play to play CB in NFL & looked more like a S from the moment he was drafted…Only it took the FO a yr & new staff to figure that out!)
Drafting a guy like Nassir Adderly (in the 2nd) would be a natural fit…(I mean, BA/Bowles did hire Adderly’s UofDELAWARE position coach to be S Coach of the Bucs)
March 11th, 2019 at 7:46 pm
@ Tampabaybucsfan
Pass on 10 mil per year players
So what are we to do have a young team with draft pics and 3rd tier players JPP and Mike Evans
Are the teams only two playmakers they that are worth their play in contract making big money
And JPP just got here last year … think about that
March 11th, 2019 at 7:47 pm
they have that are worth*