It surprises me that they couldn’t reach an agreement.
Joe is intrigued by this because the person making the claim was speaking with Todd Bowles at the NFL Scouting Combine, and he has great connections inside One Buc Palace.
Joe is alluding to Peter Schrager, co-host of Good Morning Football. Schrager is a secret admirer of the Buccaneers, and his knowledge of the team comes through in his discussions of them on NFL Network.
Schrager expressed his opinion today, arguing that instead of giving Antoine Winfield Jr. the franchise tag ($17.1 million for 2024), as they did yesterday afternoon, the Bucs ought to have made him the highest-paid safety in the league. Bucs supporters are aware that Baker Mayfield became a possible free agent the moment legal tampering opened on Monday morning due to the tag on Winfield.
Schrager remarked, “I’m amazed they couldn’t work out a contract before the franchise tag.”
Winfield, he continued, “hits all the marks”—he’s a young player coming off a fantastic season, a Super Bowl winner, and a super teammate who will play his best football yet.
“Let’s give the greatest money to him!” Schrager begged. “Give him twenty million dollars a year; give him twenty-one.”
Safety of chargers Under a contract he signed in August 2022, Derwin James earns $19 million annually, making him the highest-paid safety.
Of course, Winfield has the option to reject his franchise tag in favor of a long-term deal between now and July. If the Bucs decide not to apply the 2024 tag to Winfield once more, he will play on the tag after the summer contract deadline and become a free agent in 2021. By 2025, the cost of a second tag would be close to $21 million.
Even though Winfield’s contract is not salary cap-friendly for the 2024 season, Joe is fine with him playing this year under the franchise tag.
