2012 NFL Free Agents: 5 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Unlikely to Return Next Season

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have quite a few players that became free agents at the end of the 2011 season. Several of them, such as LeGarrette Blount and Connor Barth, are very unlikely to even test the market before they are re-signed.

Tampa Bay has not had a complete regime change because Mark Dominik is remaining on staff as general manager. But head coach Raheem Morris was fired along with his entire staff. That means there are a lot of new faces walking around One Buc Place. This is almost a sure sign that we'll see a lot of new faces on the playing field next year as well.

Unfortunately, that means that a lot of players that Tampa fans have grown to know and love will be moving on to greener pastures.

Take a look at five key players that are unlikely to return in 2012.

5. Albert Haynesworth

While Haynesworth isn't actually a free agent, he will most likely not be a Tampa Bay Buccaneer next season. He is owed $7.2 million on his current contract for the 2012 season. Luckily, the Buccaneers can cut Haynesworth with no salary cap penalties at all.

Haynesworth's "me-first" attitude is also unlikely to sit well with new head coach Greg Schiano. It's also important to note that while he actually didn't play horribly for the Bucs last season, he was primarily brought in as emergency filler for a defensive line riddled with injuries. According to some, Haynesworth was the worst culprit on a defensive line that failed to maintain gap integrity almost constantly last season.

With Gerald McCoy and Brian Price back to full strength next season, it would be hard to warrant paying Haynesworth the king's ransom that is due to him. Do the math and it isn't looking good for Haynesworth's chances of playing in Tampa in 2012.

4. Josh Johnson

The man Raheem Morris called a career backup will likely be heading out of town with a specific destination in mind. San Francisco 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh loves him, and when I say loves him, I mean he literally loves him.

Harbaugh coached up Johnson while he attended the tiny University of San Diego. He developed a very close relationship with Johnson while grooming him into an NFL quarterback.

Just as all backup quarterbacks do, Johnson most likely wants to look for an opportunity to start. He won't find many suitors after the lackluster play he has shown in his limited opportunities with the Bucs. If given a choice between backing up Josh Freeman, or pushing Alex Smith for a starting job with his mentor in San Francisco, it seems pretty likely that Johnson will be headed out west.

3. Earnest Graham

Graham has long been a fan favorite in Tampa. The former Florida Gator went undrafted, came into camp and played his way onto the roster year after year. He has always answered the call when he was given the opportunity to shine. He played fullback when the team needed a fullback, and his performance in the upset win over the New Orleans Saints was amazing.

The wheels really seemed to come off the season once Graham went down with injury. Seems like the Bucs would surely want to bring back such an integral part of their offense right? Not so fast.

Graham just celebrated his 32nd birthday, and as we all know there isn't much market for running backs in their 30s, especially those coming off a major knee injury.

It seems to make sense that Mark Dominik will let Graham test the waters of free agency, just as he did with Cadillac Williams before the 2011 season.

2. Michael Spurlock

Michael Spurlock will forever hold a special place in Buccaneer fans' hearts for returning the first kickoff for a touchdown in team history. We all owe him a debt of gratitude simply because we would have rather driven a nail through our ear than listen to the commentators discuss that horrific stat before every single kickoff of every single game.

In Josh Freeman's splendid 2010 season, Spurlock seemed to always be in the right place at the right time. Despite only catching 17 balls that season, they always seemed to come at clutch moments.

Spurlock was the invisible man in 2011. He saw himself get passed on the depth chart by Preston Parker, Dezmon Briscoe and even fellow disappearing-act Sammie Stroughter. He was also no longer used as a kick returner, despite the success he showed in that role early in his career.

It is extremely unlikely that Spurlock will find himself on an NFL roster next season.

1. Ronde Barber

Ronde Barber is the last player from the Buccaneer glory days to remain on the roster. He is extremely popular with fans. His name will be in discussion for induction into the Hall of Fame in a few years.

Barber has most likely played his last game in a Bucs uniform. While you can almost be sure Mark Dominik will offer Ronde several million reasons to stay for another year; it just seems unlikely.

Barber looked and spoke like a very tired man at the end of the season. He also strongly hinted that he would not return to Tampa if Raheem Morris was fired.

Is Barber really prepared to start fresh in his 16th NFL season? Will he be willing to acclimate himself to a new head coach, a new defensive coordinator and a new position coach? Very doubtful.

He may end up playing for Morris one more year in Washington, but he most likely won't be playing for the Bucs one way or the other.