The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are officially heading into the post-Tom Brady era after his retirement last month. That being said, it means their cap space situation will definitely improve after getting a hefty contract off the books.
Via Greg Auman of The Athletic:
Good news for the Bucs and their salary cap regarding Tom Brady's retirement. Instead of the $32 million in dead cap as they could have had, Bucs will have only $17 million total — $8 million this year, $9 million in 2023. His retirement will officially go through after June 1.
— Greg Auman (@gregauman) February 28, 2022
The good news on Brady's salary-cap impact doesn't change their cap space for 2022, but it means Brady will count $15 million less in dead cap for 2023 then could have been. Counts $9 million in dead money toward their cap next year.
— Greg Auman (@gregauman) February 28, 2022
Essentially, the Buccaneers' cap space won't exactly be affected too much in 2022, but in 2023, they're going to count $15 million less, which is huge. There's no doubt Tampa is planning to be active in free agency this offseason after losing TB12, especially at the quarterback position. There's a chance the Bucs draft a signal-caller or more likely, sign an established QB.
The Buccaneers will certainly be feeling the loss of Brady, who led them to a Super Bowl title in his very first season in 2020. But, it's important to note that Tampa hasn't yet retained any of their 26 free agents because they currently own just $2.37 million in cap space. That being said, some moves need to be made in order to either bring back key pieces or sign others.
There are still some who believe Tom Brady will come out of retirement and play in 2022, but it seems like he's enjoying life away from football. It's really tough to predict what the Buccaneers will look like without him calling the shots, though.