Shaq Barrett is one of the few remaining NFL players who hasn't signed his franchise tag yet. That appears to be about to change. Despite his intention to sign his franchise tender with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Barrett is filing a grievance with the NFLPA, per ESPN's Adam Schefter.
Bucs pass rusher Shaq Barrett has notified Tampa that he officially has accepted his franchise tender, but with an asterisk: he has filed a grievance with NFLPA to be tagged as a DE, not a LB, @RosenhausSports tells ESPN. There’s a $2 million diffference between a DE and an LB.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) July 10, 2020
Since the NFL doesn't distinguish between inside linebacker or outside linebacker, both positions receive the same amount via the franchise tag. In the upcoming season, a linebacker is slated to make $15.82 million if they received the franchise tag.
On the other hand, defensive ends are set to make $17.78 million with the franchise tag. That means that there is nearly a $2 million difference in what Shaq Barrett could make next season. With that in mind, Barrett is attempting to make the argument that he should be defined as a defensive end instead of an outside linebacker.
For the Buccaneers, their argument would be Shaq Barrett is standing up more than he has his hand in the ground. Therefore, he should be considered an outside linebacker. However, this entire situation could be avoided if the NFL would make one simple adjustment; make the edge rusher position its own entity.
Last offseason, Shaq Barrett signed a one-year deal with Tampa Bay that was worth $4 million. Barrett proceeded to be a phenomenal return on investment, posting a career-high 19.5 sacks and six forced fumbles in 2019.
Even though he's filing a grievance, Shaq Barrett has expressed that it was a “50/50 chance” that he'd sign the franchise tender to return to the Buccaneers. While he'll officially sign his tender, the 27-year-old pass rusher hopes to receive $2 million more than he was expecting.
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