Jason Licht Confirms He “Kicked The Tires” On Trey Hendrickson
March 19th, 2026
The Bucs crave a better edge rush but weren’t willing to shop at Diesel or Nordstrom last week to get one.
That was an embedded message from Buccaneers Ring of Honor general manager Jason Licht yesterday when he sat with Joe and a few local reporters at One Buc Palace.
Were the Bucs really hunting big-fish edge rusher Trey Hendrickson in free agency?
“We did [kick the tires] on [Trey Hendrickson]. We kicked the tires on a lot of things,” Licht said, acknowledging some of the Bucs’ free agency interests reached the media and others did not.
“You know, we had to make a decision on — we’ve got future flexiblity, draft picks. Ultimately we decided not to pull the trigger.”
Instead, the Bucs added part-time Lions edge rusher Al-Quadin Muhammad, a veteran who had a breakthrough 2025 season with 11 sacks while averaging only about 25 snaps per game. And they got him for a maximum of $6 million on a one-year deal.
Man, if Muhammad can harass quarterbacks again like he did last year, Joe suspects some Bucs fans will stop muttering “Hendrickson” in their sleep.
With the Bucs’ edge rush bar so low, Muhammad represents a hell of an upgrade.
March 19th, 2026 at 10:09 am
we need more Pass Rush help. Keep ’em coming!
March 19th, 2026 at 10:09 am
Hendrickson at 4 years $112m = Stupid
March 19th, 2026 at 10:11 am
Licht kicked the tires on garrett too lol….
who cares…Trey is a Raven and Maxx is a Raider…
what will licht do regarding the OL depth?
GO BUCS!!!!
March 19th, 2026 at 10:17 am
Wow joe if he has averaging 25 sacks a game we rolling who can stop us you type only averaging 25 sacks a game like that’s a bad thing this is a better signing than Myles garrett would have been and he wasn’t starting man lions are dumb.
March 19th, 2026 at 10:21 am
Vomitous failure.
March 19th, 2026 at 10:22 am
@FrontFour
You are 100% right Sir…..
Same as the poanthers with Jaelen Phillips 120mm 4 years…..
Stupid moves that can camplicate your future
March 19th, 2026 at 10:25 am
“Hendrickson at 4 years $112m = Stupid”
Yup
Hendrickson wanted the money he wasn’t going to get in Cincinnati
March 19th, 2026 at 10:27 am
Jason Licht no should be in the tire kicking Hall of Fame because that’s all he does. Just to appease the fans no real effort.
March 19th, 2026 at 10:31 am
Was the future flexibility, “Draft picks” words about kicking the tires on Maxx? That part doesn’t seem to apply to Trey here at all….
March 19th, 2026 at 10:41 am
Averaging 25 sacks a game? If there are about 60 defensive plays per game, that’s a sack every other play! That’s a $25 million man there!
March 19th, 2026 at 10:42 am
Nick2 Says:
March 19th, 2026 at 10:27 am
Jason Licht no should be in the tire kicking Hall of Fame because that’s all he does. Just to appease the fans no real effort
Jason Licht in the ‘tire kicking Hall of Fame’? That’s one of the dumbest takes I’ve seen. The guy BUILT a Super Bowl roster, navigated cap hell, kept the team competitive post-Brady, and you’re crying because he doesn’t panic-sign every overpriced free agent ESPN hypes up? That’s called discipline, not ‘no effort.’
March 19th, 2026 at 10:49 am
I’m going to go on a limb and say they’ll be the best defense in history if he averages 25 sacks a game 🤷🏼♂️
March 19th, 2026 at 10:51 am
Considering everything from drafting to signing fa’s in the nfl is a complete gamble I think the cost for both Crosby and Hendrickson were too high.
March 19th, 2026 at 10:55 am
Okay, so the Dolphins truly only got a 1st and a 3rd from Denver, in reality. And, Denver improved their 4th by about 20 spots in the 4th-swap. Now, that makes a lot more sense, and they’re all 2026’s. I friggin HATE when they do that. It’s soooo misleading, until you look at the actual DETAILS. I mean, what’s the friggin POINT, other than just trying to SHOCK everyone, by ‘ginning-up’ a bunch of BS. It looks A LOT better for Denver NOW… The 30th-overall, a late 3rd, and they IMPROVED their 4th by about 20-slots. Not terrible. I thought SURELY Sean Payton could not be THAT stupid. Still, I’ve never been a fan of Waddle at THAT $$$$ amount. They were SO DESPERATE for a SPEEDY Playmaker on the outside for Bo Nix, to go along with Sutton on the opposite side. It was a win-win. Miami needs the picks and they got some high-end ones. Plus, they get out of that contract that they totally overpaid for.
March 19th, 2026 at 10:59 am
Read up on George Kittle’s sell job. Interesting that the NFLPA’s annual report cards had the 49ers ranked 14th overall, with players giving ownership an A- grade. The Buccaneers ranked 29th (out of 32), with a D grade.
Quit syphoning our money to ManU, dang Glazerhouses.
March 19th, 2026 at 10:59 am
this team is a joke
March 19th, 2026 at 11:03 am
Tom brady came here and won the superbowl for us he put the team on his back
March 19th, 2026 at 11:07 am
Why would any big name free agent willingly come here we got a gm who’s not really good tbh a bad hc and no franchise qb just a bad gm trying to get average free agents to try to appease the delusional part of the fan base. No big name free agent wants to come here
March 19th, 2026 at 11:11 am
FRED FLINTSTONE
March 19th, 2026 at 11:17 am
@ #99 The Big Fella or whatever, Says: “ The guy BUILT a Super Bowl roster, navigated cap hell, kept the team competitive post-Brady.”
Delusional. ALL Smoke. ALL Mirrors. And, YOU are buying it! I can tell. LoL. 93-104. I mean, it’s HILARIOUS some of you. He has been AWFUL, in every way imaginable. It is a VERY LONG list, too! I mean, MISERABLE. Seriously, could not be any worse, the moves HE’s MADE over the past several years, now. Hasn’t drafted a PRO-BOWLER, in the last FIVE DRAFTS. Do YOU even know just HOW HARD that is to accomplish nowadays!? Coen. Extending BOWLES. Godwin. Reddick. Just lost Mike too, because of it. That 2025-Draft… I mean, WTF WAS THAT!? Extended McCollum waaaayyy too EARLY, even when he didn’t have to… Costing us MILLIONS. Could’ve prob had him for about HALF of the amount he signed him for after THAT last season had he just WAITED like he should’ve. Seriously, there was ZERO reason to hurry. TEDDY. The entire Trask-ordeal, for even WASTING a prime pick, in the first place. And, on and fricking ON. Not even TRYING for Micah Parsons, when this team was ‘supposedly’ a CONTENDER last season!? Oh yeah, prob couldn’t because HE’d just SPENT about $60-MORE MIL FULL-GUARANTEED on Godwin AND Reddick. The list is sooooo LONG. 93-104. And, YOU will STILL be ‘slurping up’ every last drop of it… EVEN, after this complete DISASTER of an upcoming season in front of us. YOU’LL still be all-aboard Lmao. It’s called having “Stockholm Syndrome,” and a weak-fragile EGO. You aren’t capable of changing along with the data and FACTS. The freaking TRUTH. Again, 93-104. He was AWFUL before Brady. And, he has only reverted back to his same HORRIBLE SELF, since post Brady. He is WHO he is. Period. End of Story.
March 19th, 2026 at 11:22 am
93-104. Including BRADY, and in the NFC South. Has been absolutely MISERABLE, without Tom Brady literally, telling him his EVERY move about WTF to do. Just HORRIBLE. It’s the #1 REASON for why we are where we are NOW. He canNOT evaluate talent, and has ZERO instincts. Just extremely ’unimpressive’ in every way imaginable. I mean, SO BAD that none of it has even made any sense BAD. 💯
March 19th, 2026 at 11:33 am
Big Fella, you are spot on. Keep the level headed and thoughtful post coming. This place could use more of that.
JL did the right thing for this team and it’s future by not over paying for any of these overpaid edge rushers.
Time to bring in some young talent in this draft to reload the defense and add some depth on oline. Whatever order that comes depends on how the board falls and much like FA, not over reaching for need.
March 19th, 2026 at 11:36 am
More gaslighting by Jason the hype master. Kicking tires means nothing. Go out and get Crosby or are you still kicking the tires on him also?
March 19th, 2026 at 11:45 am
Too much money too much given up for a older by NFL Standards D-End. Next up , maybe not as much of a big name guy but a little more youtkh & good up side.
March 19th, 2026 at 11:46 am
Licht is playing it smart. If we had signed TH he probably would have gotten injured. We need a room that can absorb injuries.
March 19th, 2026 at 11:57 am
It’s exhausting. Anger and sadness, hopelessness. Despair. It’s all there is until the nuke hits One Buc Place.
March 19th, 2026 at 11:59 am
MelvinJunior has panache and I like his take on Fred Flintstone
March 19th, 2026 at 12:00 pm
capebuc Says:
Licht is playing it smart.
^^^^^^^^
Exactly.
You can’t think:
Bowles is a complete loser HC.
AND …
Licht should go all in on vet free agents.
If you think:
Bowles is a loser (and he 100% is).
THEN …
Licht should build cap space, load up on young talent through the draft, and not resign Baker.
SO …
You create the perfect situation for the next HC.
March 19th, 2026 at 12:00 pm
Okay, Melvin has had enough coffee this morning
March 19th, 2026 at 12:01 pm
This is getting over the top. So now Hendrix lost his shine. Pftttt.
March 19th, 2026 at 12:04 pm
I’d like to know if he kicked the tires on Bradly Chub.
March 19th, 2026 at 12:04 pm
The Hendrickson and Phillips deals are mind-bogglingly incompetent. Phillips in particular. I liked him actually, he’s young and still has some upside, but he has a terrible injury history. History. And that money the Panthers gave him simply makes no sense. Never a double-digit sacker. Just stupid money. Hendrickson on the other hand earned his money, just not that much. Not at his age and with his injuries. So I’m glad we passed on both for those kinds of stupid dollars.
March 19th, 2026 at 12:06 pm
I make 50000 a year and like the Bucs I kicked the tire on a Porsche
Just like the phone call to find out HARBAUGH wants real money
So the Bucs go back to the Dollar tree and decide to keep the old coach another year
CHEAP
BUT SMART because fans will buy tickets food and merchandise
Glazers still get paid
Bucs are about bottom line not Winning
March 19th, 2026 at 12:07 pm
Six to eight sacks from Muhammad is what I expect. Anything more would be gravy. And compare his annual salary to the other guys. They are literally paying four times more for those players and will almost certainly not get anywhere near that kind of production. Sometimes you pull the trigger, but I was very glad our notoriously gun shy GM stayed away from those deals.
March 19th, 2026 at 12:07 pm
Jason Licht is the GM on paper
Joel Glazer is running the football operations for the Bucs
Licht don’t have the authority to trade 1st round drafts picks
He don’t have the authority to hand out large contracts to Free Agents
He need Joel approval to make any major football decision
If Licht was running things, Todd Bowles would’ve been gone long ago
It’s Joel and Bruce Arians keeping Bowles in Tampa, not Licht
Jason Licht is the front man, addresses the media, take the heat
March 19th, 2026 at 12:11 pm
Slypirate
Bud Licht shouldn’t let the door hit him in the a$$ when he gets booted.
March 19th, 2026 at 12:16 pm
👆👆👆Insider info ? or just a hunch?👆👆👆
March 19th, 2026 at 12:19 pm
I just kicked the tires on a new Maserati down in Naples the other day. But the sales guys spotted me on the lot so I hopped in my 2007 Ford Focus and hauled ass out of there.
March 19th, 2026 at 12:25 pm
I live in Fort Myers and drive a 2007 Ford Focus……….creepy.🤔
March 19th, 2026 at 12:36 pm
I once kicked the tires on a 1982 Yugo…and the car fell apart. Since then, I’ve learned to test drive instead of kicking.
March 19th, 2026 at 12:49 pm
D-Rok Says:
March 19th, 2026 at 12:36 pm
I once kicked the tires on a 1982 Yugo…and the car fell apart. Since then, I’ve learned to test drive instead of kicking.
———–
Here’s a book related to that:
The Yugo: The Rise and Fall of the Worst Car in History.
Read it years ago, was really fun read.
March 19th, 2026 at 12:53 pm
I don’t think Licht is going anywhere the Glazers are Thankful for that SB.
Sly is right 100%, this offseason is a product of a GM being smart for the future.
What Tomlin or McDermott could do with 100 Million and a good base of players is scary to think about.
Problem?
Bowlers will give them a pick in the high teens, so getting a QB will be hard.
Unless you fully tank a season Miami style and REBUILD, you will NEVER get a QB of your choosing to work out. Can we truly win a SB with Baker?
That’s for 1 of those 2 new HCs to decide. He does have a good cast this year so Baker will write his own story.
I’ll watch!!
March 19th, 2026 at 12:56 pm
Diesel or Nordstrom? LOL…is that what middle class folks consider uptown? That’s hilarious.
March 19th, 2026 at 12:57 pm
There’s an old saying about the Yugo.
If you’re in one and it gets hit — You Go!
March 19th, 2026 at 1:28 pm
Proofreading for the last 5-6 posts has been abysmal. Dude averages 25 SACKS a game… you mean SNAPS?
March 19th, 2026 at 1:41 pm
Sure hope they don’t hire Tomlin. He’s nothing more than Todd Bowles on steroids. Just like Todd, he usually sneaks into the playoffs with 9-10 wins and loses in the first round. Is he an upgrade over Todd? Yes but not much of one. We need an offensive minded coach. Then we’re not constantly changing OCs every year.
March 19th, 2026 at 1:49 pm
We did not address our lack of a bonafide Pass Rush. I’m gonna cringe if we cannot get of the field. Because thats when Baker goes desparate and tries to win games by himself. Not optimistic. But you never know.
March 19th, 2026 at 1:56 pm
Better not kick the tires on drafting one in Rd 1
March 19th, 2026 at 2:08 pm
Big fella spot on. The same guys saying licht sucks are the same guys saying that Bruce Allen was a great GM before licht. 🤡 Tampa has a 🤡 show for fans not all fans tho there are some great ones. Way too big of a gamble to sign damage goods like Trey and Crosby. You’d have to give up way too much for them. Trey for a huge contract and 2 1st rd picks for Crosby is crazy. If licht for those guys and they had terrible seasons each fan who is crying would turn and be like see I told ya it was a bad signing when they were rooting for it.
March 19th, 2026 at 2:24 pm
Hopefully the new coach next year knows how to develop edge rushers cause Bowles doesn’t.
March 19th, 2026 at 2:52 pm
I wish he would have kicked the tires on Bowles.
Those babies are flat as a pancake.
March 19th, 2026 at 4:49 pm
There is no 100 million in cap room next year. The Sportrac number doesn’t include all the players and your own FA you’ll have to resign or replace. We’re already going to be cash poor again next year. Fool’s gold. JL has not spent wisely.
March 19th, 2026 at 7:08 pm
Ten four tom petty! Couldn’t have said it any better. Bunch of whiney arse biatches here these days! Go Bucs
March 19th, 2026 at 7:58 pm
Between Yaya and AQB, we can get solid pressure production. Hoping they limit Kancey and kick him out to the edge for max health/effectiveness. What we should really be concerned about is the lack of a young physical ILB next to Anzalone.
March 19th, 2026 at 8:10 pm
Smart move
March 19th, 2026 at 8:12 pm
Lakeland Says:
“Jason Licht is the GM on paper
Joel Glazer is running the football operations for the Bucs”
That was years ago. Things have changed now.
March 19th, 2026 at 8:14 pm
No big trades, no big spending. Just draft picks and a couple lower cost draft picks. Why?
To make the team more enticing for a new head coach IF Bowles fails this year. And if he does badly, then we’ll be in position to get a new QB…if we need to.
March 19th, 2026 at 8:14 pm
If the offense does great, then Robinson might be our new HC.
March 19th, 2026 at 8:15 pm
At this rate with his sh!t drafting DE, it will be my kids that see the next SB run.
March 19th, 2026 at 10:40 pm
Everyone forgets most of these elite guys seeking major money costs the team sometimes many years to recover. And so what if we did get Hendrickson, and he does a Hassan Reddick? Doesn’t show up and does and disappoints.
You never know when an athlete is going to show up. But some do and they might not be uber x athletes but you can always expect them to give 150 percent. We need more of those kind.
March 20th, 2026 at 3:57 pm
Licht pretended he was bargain shopping for elite talent, so he had someone make a low ball, minimal-year, Hasaan Reddick offer.
Licht may have thought he’d previously done enough to make Tampa a destination for free-agents – but M1K3 leaving & and the epic defensive collapse down the stretch destroyed that for elite talent. Sure, we can get rotational help, maybe some rent some attitude – but the owners cash-crunch revealed that small era as OVER.
Too many teams DECIDED that the cost of talent has gone up – and Licht didn’t get the memo.
No edge for the 5th straight season means we can get used to losing in 3rd & 28…
Not impressed with excuses. No shot at fixing it in the draft, no one on the roster has proven to fill that role, no track record of finding or developing an edge…and a complete miscalculation of the desperate need for an elite, high-priced solution.
Might as well draft Sadiq, maybe we can outscore a few teams next season by grabbing an X receiver posing as a TE. Then the new HC and DC can get an answer for that longterm edge need on 2027.
March 20th, 2026 at 5:38 pm
He should go kick the tires on a moving van.
Enough is enough.
He can’t draft pass rushers. If he won’t sign one, then it’s time to move on.
March 21st, 2026 at 8:35 am
Hendrickson was never the play, that guy has 5-6 sacks written all over him……now a pissed off Crosby? That’s the ticket. IF we gave up only this years first, and say a 2nd next year, would you be happy with that move? I would…no way our 15th pick would be better the way we draft the D-line..and then every part of the defense gets better thru addition