Report: Shaq Barrett to Sign Bucs Contract amid Playoff Push After Dolphins Release

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are signing outside linebacker Shaq Barrett to their 53-man roster on Saturday.

Both Greg Auman of The Athletic and Scott Reynolds of Pewter Report relayed the news. It'll be a one-year deal for Barrett, who recently requested his release from the Miami Dolphins, per Reynolds.

The Miami Dolphins waived Barrett on Thursday, per ESPN's Adam Schefter. He needed to clear waivers on Friday to be eligible to sign elsewhere.

Barrett signed with the Dolphins as a free agent last March, but he then changed course and retired in July. However, Barrett then applied for reinstatement in November. Barrett did not suit up for Miami this season.

Barrett has played nine NFL seasons—four with the Denver Broncos (2015-2018) and five with the Bucs (2019-2023). He's a two-time Pro Bowler who led the NFL with 19.5 sacks in 2019. Barrett also dominated for the 2020 Super Bowl champion Bucs, amassing four sacks and nine tackles during their playoff run.

His last full season was 2023, when Barrett had 52 tackles and four-and-a-half sacks for an NFC South champion team that reached the Divisional round. Barrett started 18 games (including playoffs) for that squad.

After the year, the Bucs released Barrett in an attempt to get younger at the position, per Reynolds.

But now he's back in town as the Bucs look to surpass the Atlanta Falcons for the AFC South title. Both teams are 8-7, but Atlanta has the head-to-head tiebreaker in hand.

Tampa Bay's regular season ends with home games against the 4-11 Carolina Panthers and 5-10 New Orleans Saints.