Bucs' Shaq Barrett Says He Wants to 'Break the Bank' with Free-Agent Contract

As he's once again due to hit free agency, Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker Shaquil Barrett isn't prepared to give his team a hometown discount.  

Barrett said Thursday on SiriusXM's Mad Dog Sports Radio (via Kevin Patra of NFL.com) his focus is on getting paid in a big way:

"I'm most definitely looking forward to getting a long-term deal done. ... I feel like it's time for me to break the bank now, and I most definitely want to do that to be able to set my family up better and most definitely going to keep producing, so it's not like anything is going to fall off. I still think I got a lot left in the tank. I'm still getting better, actually. I'm still learning, like just still learning, like week in, week out. And there's like, as you can see as the season progressed like ... I ended the season playing the way that I wanted to play. And you can see that I did progress throughout the season, and I'm still progressing."

While Barrett didn't rule out a return to the Buccaneers, he didn't sound like he's necessarily going to make it easy, either.

The 2019 Pro Bowler signed a one-year franchise tender with Tampa Bay last July. Patra noted tagging him again would cost roughly $19 million for the 2021 season.

That may not be an option, though, with Godwin due to hit the open market. The receiver will likely be the bigger priority, so they could give him the franchise tag the moment it looks like a long-term deal is unattainable.

That would work out nicely for Barrett since it would clear a path for him to get the biggest payday possible. And at 28, this might be his best shot at maximizing his value.

After leading the NFL in sacks (19.5) in 2019, some regression was expected in 2020. Barrett finished with 57 tackles, eight sacks and two forced fumbles, remaining an effective pass-rusher off the edge.

Pro Football Focus ranked the 6'2", 250-pound defender as the 14th-best free agent on the board:

"One of the more efficient pass-rushers in the league over the past few years, Barrett has put up solid production whether in a part-time or full-time role. He's graded 'in the green' as both a run defender and as a pass-rusher in all five years of his career, as he sets a hard edge in the run game and wins with good hands and a variety of moves when attacking the pocket."

As much as the Buccaneers pushed their chips all-in to win a title, they're projected to have a little more than $30 million in salary-cap space, per Spotrac, and that's before the inevitable cost-cutting moves to free up more money.

Tampa Bay should theoretically have enough money to re-sign Barrett on a long-term deal as long as another franchise doesn't throw a massive offer his way.