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The Tampa Bay Buccaneers made a big move at cornerback, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter. Schefter reported that Tampa Bay cut starting cornerback Vernon Hargreaves, their former first-round pick in 2016 out of Florida. Hargreaves had played the third-most defensive snaps of all Buccaneers this season (582), including 46 snaps last Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals. Hargreaves will now go on waivers.
Their pass defense was ranked worst in the league, so some change was inevitable. It’s just strange to outright cut someone who led his position in playing-time at this point in the season, even if Buccaneers coach Bruce Arians benched Hargreaves late in the game for a perceived lack of hustle.
Hargreaves’ release might look as if it’s coming at a strange time, but it makes some sense; at a distant third-place in the NFC South with a 3-6 record, the Buccaneers are shifting their focus towards self-evaluating and figuring out which players will still be here next year. Cutting a former top draft pick sends a clear message that no one is safe, and lacking effort won’t be tolerated.
So what does this mean for the New Orleans Saints? They’re inbound for Tampa Bay, bringing a receiving corps that’s pretty much been a one-man show. Michael Thomas has caught 86 passes this year, while the other wide receivers (Ted Ginn Jr. Tre’Quan Smith, Deonte Harris, and Austin Carr) have combined for 30 receptions. New Orleans has had to get creative in its use of pass-catching tight ends, running backs, fullbacks, and quarterback Taysom Hill to try and pick up the slack.
Sunday should be another big game for Thomas. He dropped a season-high 182 receiving yards on Tampa Bay in their last meeting inside the Mercedes-Benz Superdome, outmuscling every defensive back they tried to assign to him. And he did that with Teddy Bridgewater at quarterback. Without Hargreaves on the field and with Drew Brees throwing to him, there’s no reason Thomas should slow down any time soon.
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