There has been plenty of speculation regarding the uncertain future of New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady as he gets set to hit the market as a free agent. It appears the Tampa Bay Buccaneers could be looking to take a legitimate shot at him this offseason.
Quarterback Jameis Winston is eligible to receive either an extension or a franchise tag from Tampa Bay. NBC Sports' Peter King said during an appearance on WEEI that the Bucs could be a dark horse to sign Brady instead:
Article Continues Below“The one I believe is the sleeping giant in this is Tampa Bay,” King said. “And, when I say that, if Jameis Winston is realistic with what his contract demands are, in my opinion, he’ll be the quarterback of the Bucs next year. But, I don’t know that, I’m hearing some things out of Tampa that he might want a little bit more money than the Bucs wanna pay. And we’ll see if that pans out. ”
Many of the teams that have emerged as the frontrunners to land Brady's services have largely come from the AFC, such as the Los Angeles Chargers and Indianapolis Colts. Regardless, the prospect of him making the jump over to the NFC to finish out his career would certainly be an intriguing one.
The Buccaneers boasted one of the most high-risk, high-reward offenses in the league with Winston under center in 2019. As a result, they have been rather noncommittal about the idea of moving forward with him as their franchise quarterback.
Meanwhile, Tom Brady struggled to find his rhythm in the 2019 NFL season without many viable options in his receiving corps. That certainly would not be the case in Tampa Bay, where the supporting cast is headed by a talented receiver duo in Mike Evans and Chris Godwin along with a backfield that boasts Ronald Jones and Peyton Barber.