The Buccaneers Are Facing MAJOR Contract Disputes

So we got hit with the news, uh, as we woke up this morning, Vita Vela, um, making a uh trade request, um, trying to get a contact, a contract resolution in Tampa.

Um, there's now two very big pending contracts that need to get done for Jason Light.

Um, he's got Baker Mayfield who's there, but he's certainly expressing his unhappiness with the fact that the deal has not been done.

So the team is pretty far apart.

In my mind, Baker is a 50+ million dollars dollar a year quarterback just by virtue of how the finances have broken out.

Vita Vela.

is like the one true remaining unicorn interior pass rushing defensive tackle left in the NFL and he wants to get paid like it.

Where do you see this shaking out?

Well, I mean, I, I, first of all, like I don't blame Vita Vla for a second.

I like I always think like.

There's a couple of stages to it for an NFL player, and, and you know, the first is the chase for the big second contract, which he's already passed that, right?

Like, so, there's that, all right, like whether you're a 1st-round pick or an undrafted free agent, like the truly life-changing money is 345 years in.

When you get that big 2nd contract for the star players.

And then there's the back end where it's, you know, you start to feel your football mortality and Vita is, I believe this is his 8th year, so I think he's going into year 8.

He's now 31 years old.

And like, I'm not, I'm not, you know, lowering the curtain on his NFL career, but like this to me is, is a veteran player who's incredibly accomplished, trying to get his one last bite of the apple, knowing That when he's 32, 33, 34 years old, this becomes exponentially harder.

So I don't blame him at all for it.

Um, you know, the, the, the Bucks side of this, of course, is, all right, like, well, you know, how do we reward somebody who's done a lot for our franchise, but Also make sure that we're protecting ourselves against the natural course of, of what could happen in the next couple of years.

So, I think it becomes a difficult one.

I think the trade request has become in recent years, and this is why like I even had doubt with Dexter Lawrence until it happened.

It just feels like it's been weaponized.

And I don't think Dexter Lawrence, like, I, I think in the end what we found out was Dexter Lawrence was more unhappy with the situation that we realized.

Um, so I don't wanna, I don't wanna guess that Vita Vela isn't, but like I do think, you know, he I, I think he's generally been, you know, an important piece of the puzzle there.

He's been a captain, um, you know, I, I, I've always felt like he seemed like he was content to play his career in Tampa.

And so, you know, for right now, at least, I think the hope would be that this is a way of weaponizing, you know, a trade request so you can get that, the, the, the payday you're looking for.

I mean, if you look at, and it's interesting that you brought up the Dexter Lawrence thing.

I'm writing something about it now.

By the time you guys hear this podcast, it should be up on SI.

com.

Um, the fact that like the Giants have a lot of talent, same class, I believe, right?

Were those two.

Were they both 19?

I think they were both 2019.

I might be wrong.

Vita Vela was 2018, so he's 31.

OK, so Vita V, OK, OK, so, OK, Vita Ve is going into year 9 going into year nine, but you know, the, um, the thought, and you know, I was talking to some people about this over the last couple of weeks with the Giants in particular is like, wow, we're going into another season where we're saying they have so many great options to rush the passer, but the question is, How are they going to get to 3rd down?

How are you going to get to 3rd down?

We are, and Albert, you're always great at pointing out that this is not revolution League.

It's an, or an evolution League.

It's a revolution League.

We're in a heavy Run-oriented version of the NFL right now.

Why did every other team draft another tight end in this year's draft?

Why is everybody trying to go third team personnel?

You're trying to push people around.

Why are you giving up the one guy that historically, has not been able to get pushed around.

And I think that Vita Vela is a perfect example of that.

Why is Aaron Donald, why do we, why do we still care that Aaron Donald is going to come back at his age 35 season because he's on the Mount Rushmore of interior defensive linemen and he's coming back at the perfect time in the NFL to succeed .

Yeah, and so here, here's the, the tricky part about that position, and I think this is part of why we, we, we, we saw the flare-up with Dexter Lawrence, we're seeing the flare-up with Vita V.

I sort of would create, I, I would, I would give you a parallel to tight end, to a great tight end, right?

So what pushes markets at certain positions, what pushes markets at certain positions is they're being great player after great player after great player.

That comes up, right?

So, a receiver, it was Justin Jefferson , then Ja'Marr Chase, now Jackson Smith and Jigba that have kind of leapfrogged each other over the course of the last year, last few years with the edge rushers, um, you know, you'll see.

With the edge rushers, I think, you know, it's, it, it went from, I'm gonna try to get this in the right order, Nick Bosa, or Miles Garrett, Nick Bosa, Miles Garrett, again , um, then Micah Parsons and Aiden Hutchinson, now Will Anderson, right?

And so like the more of them you have, the quicker it escalates because they, they keep playing leapfrog with each other.

And I think what's interesting about like tight end and defensive tackle versus receiver and edge rusher is having a great one can be just as impactful, if not more impactful, but they're just having the rarity of a real, a truly great one has made it so the market hasn't moved as fast.

Does that make sense?

You know, like, so, like you just haven't had, like how many Rob Gronkowskis, Travis Kelsey have been there, have have been out there, not many, right?

Like George Kittle is still one of the best players at that position into his thirties.

You have Trey McBride, but like.

There aren't a ton of guys that have, have pushed that number, so it's lagging.

I mean, the market for tight ends is less than half of what it is for a great receiver.

I think you and I could agree that having a great tight end can be an absolute queen on the chessboard on, on offense.

And I think the same thing exists with the defensive tackles.

There aren't as many great, great defensive tackles to push the market.

The market hasn't moved as fast.

And so that's where I think it creates some friction for guys like Vea and Lawrence is, well, wait a minute.

I think I'm as important as a great edge rusher or I'm a lot closer than you're putting me, and that can kind of create a divide in the way you're right in that like, you know, Jeffrey Simmons had the big $35.

2 million dollar deal that eclipsed Chris Jones, um, when he came back, but, and, and, and, and we don't have, and you know what I think the guy.

guy who probably could have done it, but it looks like, you know, either he's falling out of favor.

I don't know if he's going to get that true second contract is someone like Jalen Carter where he was so dominant during that Super Bowl run.

But I, you know, whether he's working himself out of a big payday, I don't know what the deal is there.

But I mean, the fact that like the, the De Forest Buckner deal sounded crazy 5 years ago or 4 years ago or whatever it is, at $23 million.

And now you look at him and he's what, the 11th or 12th highest-paid defensive tackle.

The Derrick Brown deal was 24 million, which to me is not reflective of his total value.

Even Milton Williams in free agency was only 26.

And so you're right, there is not that real rising tide moment for defensive tackles, even though, and that's why the tight end is a perfect analogy.

The time is now for them.

I mean, the, they are never more, they've never been more valuable, um, than they are now.

It'll be interesting to see what happens because this team lost Mike Evans.

They lost a stalwart.

And Baker Mayfield's a great leader.

I'm not saying that they're, they're devoid of leadership in any way, shape or form, but Lavonte David retires, Mike Evans goes somewhere else.

And now there's a money, not a money issue, but there's, there's money on the table and both, and two people need to grab at it.

I think that's a significant test for Jason Light, not saying he can't pass it.

Significant test for Todd Bowles going into a make or break year for them.

I mean, Little bit of a stressful situation in Tampa.

Yeah, and I think it's, I mean, it's just.

Uh, you know, I, I think they did such a good job of restocking, coming out of the Brady era, where they were really pushed up against it with older players, right?

And now that second wave of players is aging, you know, I think Evans would be in the older group, but like guys.

You know, like Vea, like Chris Godwin, the guys that were like the really young guys, when, uh, you know, when Brady was there, you know, even like worse and , and, and, and, and Winfield, who were in that draft class the year Brady got drafted, those guys are going to year 7 now, you know, so, I think it's just sort of, it comes up on you fast, the way this stuff happens, but Like you do have some of those guys starting to get older and, uh, you know, are they good enough and and you know, I, I think that puts guys like, you know, Emeka Abuka and Zion McCollum and, um, you know, and, and, and now you got, you know, Kalijah Ky like guys like that who've been like nice pieces that they've added over the last few years in the position where those guys now have to take another step and become the best players on the team.

Where, I mean, is this to you, is this classic.

Training camp posturing.

Yeah, I mean, I think I, I, I don't know, I can't imagine.

I can't imagine they don't do a deal.

I mean, would surprise you too, right?

Like, I, I just think like the trade request has been weaponized in recent years, and it's a way to get a team's attention.

It's a way to kind of create a PR issue for a team.

Uh, it's It's It's gonna have a lot more impact on the environment than just asking for a raise.

Um, it's gonna get a lot of people's attention .

It's gonna create a lot of unnecessary, like, uh, you know, trade destinations posts.

I know you've done those before, so I don't wanna take a shot at it's gonna create a lot may or may not be working on one now.

Yeah, um, yeah, so I mean, but I think that that's, that's sort of like I, I, I do think that's why you weaponize it.

You weaponize it because it's a way to get everybody's attention that you're serious about the situation.

Um, again, I, I think the landing spot is Tampa, um, but, um.

There are a few teams, I think that are in contention that could really, really use an interior pass rusher, uh, Buffalo being one and Green Bay being another, and they play in those tough cold weather cities.

Uh, Vita Vela would be so good on one of those rosters like, and the Packers are already kind of spent, uh, when it comes to, uh, Uh, dealing, uh, uh, you know , Packers are kind of spent when it comes to dealing draft capital for premium, uh, players along the defensive line, but you never know.

I mean, you know, maybe it's all in time with Jordan Love.

Who knows.