Tight Ends Market “Reset” & The Bucs
March 9th, 2020
“Mark, I got a lot more to think about than tight ends.”
Former Tampa Bay fan punching bag and rock star Bucs general manager Mark Dominik is a busy man these days coaching up NFL prospects for team interviews, in addition to sharing his knowledge on national radio.
Dominik is always an intelligent and interesting listen.
Last week, on SiriusXM NFL Radio, Dominik talked about how a big shake-up is coming for tight ends salaries and wise teams will take heed.
Dominik’s premise is that massive contracts heading toward George Kittle, Travis Kelce and others will blow up the entire pay scale at the position and it will experience a signficant “reset.”
It got Joe thinking about how maybe Cameron Brate being under contract for the Bucs through 2023 (no guaranteed money) isn’t such a bad thing and/or maybe locking up O.J. Howard early and on the cheap is something that should be considered.
“The tight end market was been suppressed for almost eight years,” Dominik said. “Not since Greg Olsen did an extension a long time ago has a tight end really hit the market the way we’re going to see some tight ends hit the market now.”
“If I was a club, I want to be ahead of the game on [tight end and free safety], not to react and wait because I think you’ll be wrong.”
Of course, Dominik has extensive experience in the tight end market. In 2009, he traded for future serial sexual predator and Vaseline aficionado Kellen Winslow, and then made him the highest paid tight end in the NFL while asking Winslow to be a stabilizing presence for an impressionable rookie quarterback and a 32-year-old head coach.
At least Winslow caught an average of 72 balls per year in his three Bucs seasons and never missed a game.
As for the tight ends market and the Bucs, it will be interesting to see if the Bucs exercise the fifth-year option (2021) on O.J. Howard’s contract. The deadline is in May.
March 9th, 2020 at 11:22 am
Breaking news, just got hold of talk show Dominick’s business card, that he has been handing out to prospects!!!!!!! It says “Learn how to fool Buffoons like me in an interview”!!!!!!!!!!!!
What a disaster that clown shoe was!!!!!!!!!!! Worst gm in Buc history!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Only Incompetent loser lovie did more damage to this franchise!!!!!!!!!!!
go bucs!!!!!!!!!!!!
March 9th, 2020 at 11:22 am
Pick up the option or put him under a long term contract at home town rates.
March 9th, 2020 at 11:23 am
I wouldn’t trust dom with a flag football team….lol…
GO BUCS
March 9th, 2020 at 11:31 am
Brate is toast and we won’t get crap for him, cap casualty. Howard will not be signed long term this season. He still needs to prove he can play AND stay healthy. Dominik advice is best used by taking the opposite tact. More and more pass catching TEs are flooding the market thanks to modern pass happy offenses and the rules that favor passing.
March 9th, 2020 at 11:31 am
lol if I’m OJ Howard reps I would tell him no way buddy not until they prove to you that they are not going to waste your talent because some coach also known as the “whisperer” figure out that it is ok to run a diverse offense that utilize all the talent not just a few pieces! We do our 2 more years and get out of Tampa!
March 9th, 2020 at 11:50 am
Too bad the Bucs don’t a a current NFL prototypical tightend , just have not seen the mean bully pass catching TE in OJ Howard
March 9th, 2020 at 12:04 pm
Chase Claypool in the 2nd round! WR and also a TE prospect. 6’4 238 4.43 40. And cost for TE is taken care of…..then draft another one next year.
So many 2nd and 3rd rounders that will be great. Thats why, for the first time, im a big fan of trading out of the first. Unless we can land Simmons, Brown, Wirfs or Becton…..even then, we have a lot of holes. Somehow, some way, we need 3 2nds and 2 3rds.
March 9th, 2020 at 12:51 pm
Dom really was so bad in every way as a GM.
Did not understand basics of team building and positional value
Did not have any idea how to pick a coach or staff
Did not know how to evaluate players mental makeup at all. See Winslow/Freeman/Mike Williams/Drug Martin/etc
Ran a horrific scouting department and only basically drafted Gerald McCoy & Lavonte David as any sort of cornerstone players across 5 years of draft picks, and one of those went #3 overall and if you take an off the ball linebacker R2 they should be pretty good..
Clayborn over Cam Jordan
Dequan Bowners over Michael Bennet
Mark Barron over Luke Kuechly or Stephon Gilmore or Fletcher Cox/etc
Rehab Revis over Sheldon Richardson/Star Lotulele
Johnthan Banks over Kawann Short
Just so many bads
March 9th, 2020 at 1:01 pm
Really? A TE in the 2nd rd. Give me a break. What nonsense. Hudson looked pretty good whwn given the chance.
March 9th, 2020 at 1:08 pm
This picture reminds me of the movie Dumb and Dumber.
March 9th, 2020 at 1:14 pm
How much are Rookie contracts??? A lot less than a “reset” TE FA market rate.
How much are “blocking” Y-TE contracts in FA? Less than F-TE FA market rates.
Trade Brate & OJ this off-season, then start all over at the TE spot. No need for $10M+ tied up in 2 TE’s…Auclair (RFA) – Hudson (ERFA) – Leggett ($735K) + New Cheap FA or Rookie would do just fine!
BA’s system calls for cheap Y-TE’s that block well & can catch a little. (Old School TE)…Not a Kelce / Kittle style F-TE’s that get moved all over – Slot / TE / HB / FB.
BA’s system does not utilize the TE to create those system driven mismatches…They max protect (BLOCK) & when thy do release – they are so far down the QB read progression chart that you shouldn’t over pay for one!
March 9th, 2020 at 1:33 pm
Allbuccedup Says:
March 9th, 2020 at 1:08 pm
This picture reminds me of the movie Dumb and Dumber.
.
.
in between the two was John Robinson …the real GM that got away
March 9th, 2020 at 1:42 pm
Howard’s got a lot to prove IMO. I wouldn’t sign him long-term. Not right now.
March 9th, 2020 at 3:10 pm
The caption for that picture should be…Dominek to Gump…. “I can’t believe I was such a crappy GM and Joe Bucs fan still uses me as a source” and Gump to Dominek… “ I can’t believe I’m such a crappy GM and I still have a job.”
March 9th, 2020 at 5:00 pm
The Bucs should extend both Brate and O.J. while they are relatively cheap. They can trade them later if that is what needs to be done. Can’t trade them if they aren’t under contract.
March 9th, 2020 at 5:52 pm
IP address from condo in Breckinridge
Mark Dominik. Thanks to the Glazers panicking with he and Raheem “the next Mike Tomlin” Morris, this franchise is still trying to dig out of the ditch Dominik dug. Joe mentioned WinSlow. Who Freeman forced balls to. Who was a cancer.
Then there was the brilliant decision to roll with Lumpkin.
Letting Bennett go in his prime.
Trading for Revis and paying him $16 large to rehab his knee —. when everyone knew the Jets were going to cut him!
What a moron!!!!!!!!!!
He’s a rock star all right. If you like Air Supply and consider them a rock band.
March 10th, 2020 at 10:32 pm
The bucs just picked up a 4th round compensatory pick maybe they can use that to get a tight end.