The Tampa Bay Buccaneers jumped out to a 3-1 start, perhaps signaling they could succeed in their post-Tom Brady life. But two straight losses have Todd Bowles’ team back at .500, sitting somewhere between sellers and buyers ahead of the NFL‘s Oct. 31 trade deadline.
What will general manager Jason Licht do over the next week? Will he try to pick up assets and make a run for the NFC South crown. Or will he start selling off assets with an eye toward the future?
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Tampa Bay Buccaneers Trade Deadline Moves
It’s still unclear if Tampa Bay intends to buy, sell, or hold at the deadline. How they play against the Buffalo Bills on Thursday Night Football might very well determine the club’s course of action. Hence, we’ve taken a two-pronged approach with our trade suggestions, depending on whether the Bucs are adding or subtracting next week.
Sellers | Trade WR Mike Evans
Tampa Bay is only a half-game out of first place in the NFC South. They have a veteran-laden roster and probably think they can compete for the division title this season.
But if they did decide to trade away players, Mike Evans makes the most sense. While he’s a franchise icon who’s spent his entire (potentially Hall of Fame) career with the Buccaneers, he’ll be a free agent at the end of the season.
MORE: NFC South Trade Candidates
Evans wanted a contract extension before this year but didn’t get one, sparking rumors that he could be dealt at the time. If Tampa Bay doesn’t re-sign Evans, they’ll only be able to get — at most — a fifth-round compensatory pick. Any departing NFL free agent with 10+ accrued seasons can only net his former team a fifth-rounder.
The Bucs would absorb more than $10 million in 2024 dead money by trading Evans, but they’d also save roughly $7 million in 2023 cash and cap space, which can be rolled over into next season.
Tampa Bay won’t give Evans away for a late-round pick. But if another team offers a second-round choice for a receiver who will be 31 years old when next season begins, the Buccaneers should at least consider it.
Buyers | Acquire RB D’Onta Foreman From the Chicago Bears
Even if the Bucs decide to buy at the trade deadline, they shouldn’t be expected to take big swings. Instead, they’ll probably settle for more modest additions at positions of need.
Few teams have had as much of an issue running the ball as Tampa Bay this season. The Bucs rank 30th in rushing EPA, 31st in yards per carry, and dead last in rushing success rate.
Tampa Bay’s offensive line has been a clear problem, ranking last in ESPN’s pass-rush win rate. But offensive linemen are rarely traded at the deadline, and the Bucs probably don’t want to block the progress of young players like right guard Cody Mauch, no matter how much they may be struggling.
What they could try to find is a complement for Rachaad White, a solid pass catcher who struggles to create his yardage, ranking 36th among 39 qualifying RBs in yards after contact per attempt.
Derrick Henry is probably too lofty of a trade target, but D’Onta Foreman could be the Buccaneers’ version of Henry Lite. Foreman, who scored three touchdowns for the Chicago Bears on Sunday, is averaging 1.02 more yards after contact per attempt than White.
The Bears will likely get rookie RB Roschon Johnson back from a two-game concussion-related absence this week, while Khalil Herbert is eligible to come off injured reserve in Week 10. It might make sense for them to sell high on Foreman, even if that only means getting a late-round pick in return.
Buyers | Pick Up TE Hunter Henry From the New England Patriots
Tampa Bay’s defense has been a top-10 unit by almost every metric, so we’ll go with another offensive addition.
We’ve already seen the Bucs add a former New England Patriots tight end in the not-so-distant past. Hunter Henry is hardly Rob Gronkowski, but he’s a better receiver at this point in his career than incumbent Tampa Bay TE Cade Otton.
Henry is a free agent at season’s end and doesn’t seem like a candidate to stick around in New England past 2023. The only problem is his current salary.
Henry will have roughly $5.3 remaining on his contract after Week 8, but the Bucs only have $3.2 million in cap space. The Patriots — who project to have the second-most cap space in the NFL in 2024 — could offer to pay down some of his salary to receive better draft-pick compensation.
