Tag: Antoine Winfield Jr.

10 safeties the Colts should target in free agency

Taking a look at some safety options for Indy in free agency.

There are plenty of question marks that surround the safety group for the Indianapolis Colts entering the 2024 offseason.

The first is whether Chris Ballard will re-sign Julian Blackmon. He’s the proven player of the group and if he does depart this offseason, then it would leave a glaring hole on the defense.

There is promise with Nick Cross but it’s a bet on his development this offseason while Rodney Thomas II has to rebound to how he performed his rookie season or he could be fighting for a roster spot.

With or without Blackmon on the roster, a veteran option should be considered by Ballard. The good news is that there is a quality group of safeties set to hit the market.

We should note that we understand a handful of these players won’t even hit the market, but we’re working under the hypothetical scenario that they become available, regardless of how slim the chances are.

If Chris Ballard decides to add to the position group via free agency, here are 10 players that the front office should target.

Multiple Bucs players listed in FOX’s top 50 free agents for 2024

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers had a successful season in 2023, but it’s going to take some effort to bring all of their key players back for next year.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have some serious accounting to do this offseason.

The Bucs massively surpassed preseason expectations in 2023, winning nine regular season games, the NFC South and one playoff game against the Philadelphia Eagles. Multiple Bucs players both old and new contributed, but now, quite a few of those contributors could be hitting the open market.

FOX Sports rounded up their top 50 free agents for the 2024 offseason, and four Bucs players appeared on the list — furthermore, three of them were in the top 15. Tampa Bay’s Antoine Winfield Jr. came in at No. 8, wideout Mike Evans at No. 10, quarterback Baker Mayfield at No. 13 and linebacker Lavonte David at No. 43.

The free agency class for the Bucs remains a question mark. David could possibly retire at his age and Mayfield’s contract desires (and whether or not he’ll take less money to stay in Tampa Bay) is relatively unknown to the general public. Evans, too, could demand a lot of money and might get it from another team — the most certain free agent to return to the Bucs from this list is likely Winfield Jr., who could be easily franchise-tagged until the next season.

Tampa Bay could save money on the salary cap by signing either Evans or Mayfield to a long-term extension before the beginning of free agency on a deadline of Feb. 19.

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NFL Honors: Start time, how to watch and Bucs nominees

Here’s how you can tune into the NFL Honors to potentially catch Bucs players win some awards for the 2023 season:

The NFL Honors comes around every year right before the Super Bowl, and two Tampa Bay Buccaneers players are nominated for some awards.

Quarterback Baker Mayfield is up for the AP Comeback Player of the Year award. The criteria for this award isn’t set in stone, but it general involves a player overcoming something from the year before — in Mayfield’s case, it’s bouncing to two different teams through poor play. He’ll have some tough competition, but he already won FOX’s version of that award.

Antoine Winfield Jr. is up for the Walter Payton Man of the Year award. The award goes to one NFL player per year for their exemplary behavior and community service off the field and the work they do for their community.

Here’s how you can watch the ceremony to see if the Bucs get represented at the awards show:

Three Bucs players named top free agents for 2024 by ESPN

It could be a tough task to get the band back together in Tampa Bay for 2024.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers had a successful year in 2023, but it could be hard to replicate that success in 2024 with how many producers from the team are hitting free agency.

ESPN’s Matt Bowen compiled a ranking of the top 50 free agents in the NFL heading into 2024, and three Bucs players found themselves at the upper echelon of the rankings. There were five total Bucs players on the list, with linebacker Devin White coming in at No. 44 and LB Lavonte David at No. 48.

Bucs safety Antoine Winfield Jr., a first-team All-Pro, was named No. 10 on the list, with second-team All-Pro wide receiver Mike Evans coming in at No. 12 and quarterback Baker Mayfield at No. 13.

Bowen was particularly impressed with Winfield Jr.’s ability to be a jack of all trades, citing his multifaceted skillset on defense:

Winfield is an impact defender with the multidimensional traits to match in coverage, create pressure and show range to the ball. Entering his peak years, he already has 15 sacks, 11 forced fumbles and 7 interceptions over his career.

He noted that Mike Evans, despite his age, remains productive in the receiving game and that his particular skillset in the vertical game still holds up:

Evans has the frame to isolate as the boundary X receiver, creating matchup potential outside the numbers. The vertical ability is still there — Evans’ 11 catches on passes thrown 20 or more yards downfield tied for 10th this season — and he has the route traits to uncover. With 1,255 receiving yards (ninth) and 13 touchdowns (tied for first) this season, Evans should be viewed as a priority target in free agency.

Finally, Bowen also gave props to Mayfield’s ability to pass in a vertical offense as he did in 2023 and mentioned his playoff prowess as a reason why teams may be looking to acquire him for next season:

Mayfield topped the 4,000-yard mark and threw 28 touchdown passes this season, leading the Buccaneers to a playoff win. He’s at his best when throwing in rhythm from the pocket, and he uses his quick release and arm talent to decisively target multiple levels of the field. A good fit for an offense with a lot of play-action and schemed verticals, Mayfield moves up our free agent board given his production over the second half of the season, including two 300-yard playoff games.

As it stands, it will be challenging to bring back these three players — but not impossible. According to Over the Cap, the Bucs have around $37 million in cap space for 2024 and can certainly increase that in a number of ways with cuts and restructures. That number is 10th in the league, and while it is certainly possible to bring everyone back, the Bucs will need to decide who is worth bringing back and who is worth letting go to build a competitive roster not only for 2024, but the near future as well.

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Studs and Duds from Tampa Bay’s 2023 season

We’ve done it game by game, but now, we’re taking a broader look at Tampa Bay’s studs and duds for the whole year:

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ season didn’t end up where the team wanted it to, but given preseason expectations and the rocky nature of its regular season, Tampa Bay’s 2023 campaign could be considered a rousing success.

The Bucs won the NFC South for the third year in a row and even won a playoff game in the Wild Card Round against a team they were betting underdogs against in the Philadelphia Eagles. And while it wasn’t perfect all the way through, there were quite a few stars that propelled the team forward — and, as it wasn’t perfect all the way through, there were a few players that may have contributed to that.

Bucs Wire has done its Studs and Duds for every game of the 2023 season, and now, we’re taking a broader look at the year as a whole. Here are our studs and duds for Tampa Bay’s latest campaign:

BucsWire’s 2023 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Team Awards

The season is over for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and there are plenty of commendations to give. See how we doled out our 2023 team awards:

The curtains have closed, the conference championship is set, and after falling 31-23 to the Detroit Lions in the divisional round, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers flip the page and turn their focus to the offseason.

Each season of football is full of ups and downs, but the Bucs’ 2023 season in particular felt more dramatic as each week went by. Several players rose to the occasion when they were called upon, but a select few stood out amongst the crowd.

BucsWire staff has made picks for each game all year, and now that the season is over, we got together to choose our team awards for the 2023 season. See who we picked for each category below:

The worst defensive players for Tampa Bay in the Wild Card, per PFF

PFF’s lowest-graded Bucs defensive players from the team’s Wild Card win included two safeties and two edge rushers.

There shouldn’t be too much to complain about when a team holds another team to nine points in the playoffs. But to some, things were not all perfect with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers defense.

Pro Football Focus took to grading every Bucs defensive player in the team’s win over the Philadelphia Eagles for the Wild Card Round, and their grades were interesting. On top of the highest-rated players, we’re taking a look at the lowest-rated players, and it’s made up of safeties and edge rushers despite some good coverage and furious blitzes throughout the night.

Here are PFF’s five lowest-rated defensive players for Tampa Bay in their Wild Card win:

S Antoine Winfield Jr. says Bucs on ‘revenge tour’ ahead of Lions game

The Bucs beat the Eagles in the playoffs after losing to them in the regular season, and they have a chance to do that against the Lions next Sunday.

It’s a dish best served cold, or so the saying goes.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers defeated the Philadelphia Eagles 32-9 on Monday in the Wild Card round of the playoffs, securing their spot as one of the NFL’s final eight teams. The Bucs are moving on to Detroit to play the Lions, and that team has a little something in common with the Eagles — the Bucs lost to both in the regular season.

The Bucs dropped their game to the Eagles 25-11 in Week 3 before losing 20-6 to the Lions in Week 6. The Bucs already beat the Eagles in the rematch, and Bucs safety Antoine Winfield Jr. is looking forward to getting the second notch on the team’s belt by beating the Lions.

“On a revenge tour,” Winfield Jr. said after the team beat the Eagles Monday night. “These teams that’s ahead of us, they all beat us in the regular season, so we’re gonna have a great time with them.”

Winfield Jr. is likely referring to both the Lions and the San Francisco 49ers, who have their own Divisional game to play against the Green Bay Packers. As a result, should the Bucs beat Detroit, they could run into that team again, too.

But first, they have to beat the Lions. They’ll have a shot to do that on Sunday at 3 p.m. at Ford Field.

Eagles eliminated from playoffs after 32-9 loss to Buccaneers

Eagles eliminated from playoffs after 32-9 loss to Buccaneers

The Eagles are set for a dramatic overhaul following the team’s shocking 32-9 loss to the Buccaneers in the wild-card round of the NFC playoffs.

Philadelphia was 0-11 on third and fourth downs combined, tallying 268 total yards on ten offensive drives in a sloppy affair that saw missed tackles and no answer for the Tampa blitz as the Eagles were held to 38 rushing yards on the night.

Baker Mayfield outplayed Jalen Hurts, going 22-36 passing for 337 yards, three touchdowns, and 0 interceptions with a 119 quarterback rating.

Rachaad White was strong on the ground, rushing 18 times for 62 yards on the night.

The Eagles will now head into an uncertain offseason, having lost six of the final seven games played, and an overhaul could include head coach Nick Sirianni with the likes of Jim Harbaugh, Bill Belichick, and others available after mass changes around the league.

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Eagles Twitter reacts to humiliating 32-9 loss to Buccaneers in wild-card round

We’re looking at the social media reaction from Philadelphia fans after the Eagles loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the Wild Card round

The Eagles are set for a dramatic overhaul, and there’s nobody safe outside of Jalen Hurts, A.J. Brown, DeVonta Smith, and Jalen Carter following the team’s shocking 32-9 loss to the Buccaneers in the wild-card round of the NFC playoffs.

Philadelphia was 0-11 on third and fourth downs combined, tallying 268 total yards on ten offensive drives in a sloppy affair that saw missed tackles and no answer for the Tampa blitz as the Eagles were held to 38 rushing yards on the night.

With a long offseason set to begin, here’s how Twitter reacted to the madness.