Gerald McCoy and Buccaneers Agree on New Contract: Latest Details and Reaction

There's no question that Gerald McCoy has established himself as both one of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' best players and one of the most dominant interior defensive lineman in the game. So it's hardly surprising that the Buccaneers awarded him with a long-term contract extension on Saturday.

The Buccaneers announced the extension on Twitter: 

Jay Glazer of Fox Sports first reported the deal:

Ian Rapoport of NFL.com adds more details:

The Bucs provided comments from GM Jason Licht, who spoke about the deal:

"

From the moment Lovie and I arrived here, we knew it was vital for us to keep Gerald in Tampa Bay long term as one of the cornerstones of our franchise,” said Licht. “With the backing of the Glazer family, we were able to accomplish that. On the field, Gerald is one of the best players in the National Football League, who has been extremely productive and will be for years to come. We are happy to reward someone that has a rare work ethic, which not only makes him an elite player, but serves as an example for our entire team. His commitment, character and leadership are attributes that make him a truly special person, who will play a pivotal role in our future success.

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CBS Sports' Jason La Canfora puts the deal into perspective:

In four games this season, McCoy has 17 tackles, two sacks and a pass deflection. He's played in the past two Pro Bowls and was a 2013 Associated Press First-Team All-Pro selection. 

He's also one of the team's captains, and recently showed his leadership by vocally calling out his teammates for what he deemed to be "soft" play during the team's 1-5 start, per Pat Yasinskas of ESPN:

"

I think we're making too many excuses. There's always a reason why this is happening or why that's happening. It has to stop. We just have to say, 'OK, I did wrong, I didn't win that one, I have to win the next one and the one after that.' If you win 70 percent of your battles, you have a shot to win, simple as that.

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It's pretty clear the Buccaneers organization doesn't think McCoy is one of the soft ones. Now, the star defensive tackle will need to continue to prove he's worth the team's significant investment.