The NFL’s 2019 rushing champion, Derrick Henry, is set to become a free agent on March 18th, and while the Tennessee Titans are presumed as the favorites to retain their starting running back, Jordan Dajani at CBS Sports is reporting that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers would be the most popular landing spot outside of the Titans.
Notably, the Buccaneers struggled running the ball with Ronald Jones and Peyton Barber sharing the workload out of the backfield last season, only notching one game with a back exceeding the 100-yard mark, and that was Jones in the final game of the season. Collectively, Jones and Barber combined for 1,521 yards on the ground for the entire season. Henry, meanwhile, finished the 2019 season with 1,540 yards. So, it’s safe to say that if the Buccaneers are truly looking to upgrade at running back, Henry is on their radar.
Henry’s projected market value from Sportrac is around 4-years at $55.3 million with an average yearly salary of $13.8 million. While an upgrade at running back could be nice, and Jones has shown flashes of being a very solid running back in the league, the Buccaneers have a lot to focus on when it comes to free agency. Coach Bruce Arians has said that he wants to keep the entire defense together, and that the possibility of doing so is ‘“very realisitic.” Jameis Winston will also be a free agent, although Arians has said that he, and the team, already know what they are doing at the QB position.
Since the franchise tagging period has opened, as expected, the Buccaneers have not placed the franchise tag on Winston, and if the organization cannot work out a long-term deal with Shaquil Barrett, he will most likely be the recipient of that franchise tag. The tagging period started on February 27th and will close on March 12th.
[lawrence-related id=28779,28772,28760,28753]