The NFL recently released the 2024 salary cap, which was much larger than many people projected.
Why the league raised it so much remains to be seen, but with extra money, teams have a better opportunity to retain their top talent.
This initially seemed like good news for many teams across the league, including the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who were slated to have some tough contract decisions to make.
While the increased cap does give them more flexibility, they ultimately decided to move on from one of their key defenders.
According to Adam Schefter, Shaquil Barrett has been released from the team, freeing the Buccaneers from his $15.04 million option bonus due next month.
Buccaneers are releasing two-time Pro Bowl outside linebacker Shaquil Barrett, per sources.
Barrett had a $15.04 million option bonus due next month. Instead of collecting it, he now will become a free agent. pic.twitter.com/4We6T0zzXw
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) February 27, 2024
Barrett has been one of the team’s best defenders for several years, but ultimately, the NFL is a business.
The Buccaneers might not have seen long-term value out of Barrett, a potential reason for this decision.
How will the 2024 season unfold for the Buccaneers without Barrett on their defense?
After surprising many around the league, including themselves, with a playoff berth and a playoff win in 2023, expectations are now slightly raised for the Buccaneers.
They weren’t expected to be a playoff team, especially since they had a lot of unknowns at the quarterback position coming into the season.
However, once Baker Mayfield took the reins at quarterback, he didn’t want to give it back and played well enough to hold onto the job all year.
He seems to be a part of the team’s plans moving forward, which is evidently not the case for Barrett on the defensive side of the ball.
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