The Darrelle Revis trade rumors have continued through Wednesday and teams like the Oakland Raiders, New England Patriots, Miami Dolphins, Philadelphia Eagles and Cleveland Browns are in the mix and those same teams will also be there if the Buccaneers release the cornerback and that is looking likely and now he has been released by the Buccaneers.
According to Pro Football Talk, the Patriots have shown interest and so have the Raiders, as the Pats lost Aqib Talib in free agency to the Broncos and Oakland has the cap space to absorb the six-year, $96 million contract and $16 million salary for Revis. The Browns and the Raiders were the first teams to show interest in Revis and the Patriots seem like a natural fit, although the Jets would hate it if that happened. Revis will not take a pay cut and that could lead to his release.
Here is a look at some Tampa Bay Buccaneers free agency notes, trade rumors for Darrelle Revis and updates have the team already bringing in Alterraun Verner and Josh McCown. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are coming into 2014 with a new general manager, new head coach and new uniforms and with Lovie Smith at the helm, a trade of Darrelle Revis will be the top priority to work out or not, while names like Jared Allen, Charles Tillman, Brandon Spikes, Henry Melton, Anthony Spencer and Michael Bennett could be potential targets.
The Buccaneers have a top 10 pick in the draft this year and Smith has said there a chance that the team selects a quarterback despite having Mike Glennon already, as he was pick by Mark Dominik and not new general manager Jason Licht might want to add another young arm to the mix. The team has some money to spend and they have just $132,452 in dead money and ESPN.com reports that the team could look into names like Jared Allen, Charles Tillman and Brandon Spikes on the market to add to the defense for Smith.
The team has been rumored to be looking into trading Revis and his high salary, including a $16 million cap figure and if the Bucs do that, they will have even more money to work with on the cap. ESPN.com reports that the team will have about $114 million set for the offseason and the cap will be over $130 million and Tillman could be an option f the trade goes down, as he played for Smith in Chicago and could be had for a cheap price. Same goes for Allen, as he will be a coveted player on the market, but since he is a veteran he may not cost as much as other players and could be had for less than Michael Bennett or even fellow veteran Justin Tuck.
The team went just 2-14 last season and finished last in the league in passing yards per game and 22nd in the league in rushing yards per game and the defense wasn't so great either, as they were first in rushing yards allowed in 2012 and went to 15th in 2013 and they allowed over 230 yards in the air per game. Revis was his usually great self at cornerback, but that is a ton of money to commit to one position on defense and they could look to move him.
The Buccaneers have an interesting pick in the draft, as the top names could be off the board by the time they choose at seven, but players like Anthony Barr, Khalil Mack and CJ Mosley could be in the mix and that may be the way Smith wants to play it for his first draft. The Patriots, Broncos and Eagles have been mentioned as destinations for Revis and even if he doesn't get traded, the Buccaneers should be much improved on defense under Smith and it could be even better if they sign some free agents as well.
