The Tampa Bay Buccaneers officially used the franchise tag on EDGE-rusher Shaquil Barrett Monday morning, just a few hours prior to the deadline.
Through the weekend and since the official point where the tag was placed on Barrett, there have been several reports that the Buccaneers were becoming a legitimate contender for Tom Brady in free-agency.
The Tampa Bay Times‘ Rick Stroud reported that the Buccaneers seem prepared to move on from Jameis Winston and pursue other options in free agency.
The Pewter Report reported that the Buccaneers don’t feel there is much of a market for Winston and that it would be more beneficial for them to pursue these different options at this point.