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It didn’t happen in the offseason but it could happen now — star wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. in a Tampa Bay Buccaneers uniform.
The Cleveland Browns released Beckham, and insiders such as ESPN’s Jeff Darlington believe the Bucs will sign him. Darlington said he “can’t get the idea out of my head” regarding Beckham joining the Bucs if the Browns show him the door.
“I have never heard of another quarterback that Odell Beckham Jr. respects and has aspired to play with than Tom Brady,” Darlington said. “Of course it matters about whether or not he is actually able to pick his team, in which case, we should keep that in the back of our heads.”
“Tom Brady loves this roster, and loves his players. Scotty Miller is coming back. Antonio Brown (is) dealing with a(n) ankle injury though. We’ll see how that all plays out,” Darlington added. “But keep in the back of your mind the fact that Tom Brady and Odell Beckham Jr. have long aspired to play alongside one another.”
Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio likewise thinks the Bucs will nab Beckham. Florio anticipates the Bucs would put him on the practice squad first and then move him to the 53-man roster to make a run.
FS1’s Shannon Sharpe recently tweeted a photo of Brady and Beckham together in 2019, amid speculation of their possibly joining forces in Tampa Bay.
Bucs Could Afford Beckham
While Beckham had an $8 million guaranteed salary with the Browns this season, he won’t cost that much to sign him.
“They’re going to restructure his contract. Cut his base salary down to about the minimum or maybe a little bit above, give the rest in a signing bonus,” NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport said. “What that does, is when he heads to waivers, he is claimable. Another team could actually claim Odell Beckham Jr. for the low price of probably around a million dollars.”
Just one catch for the Bucs though. Beckham has to go unclaimed on waivers with 23 other teams first according to Sports Illustrated’s All Bucs.
Could one of those teams right up at the top of the claiming order need receivers? Could they claim him and ruin his dreams of being free? We will find out,” Rapoport said.
Tampa Bay has the salary space, $3.2 million, to sign Beckham if he’s available at that point per Over The Cap.
How Beckham Fits in With The Bucs
Tampa Bay’s injuries this season show the Bucs can’t have enough quality skill players.
Brown, Miller, and tight end Rob Gronkowski all have missed time. Fellow tight end O.J. Howard’s journey back from last year’s Achilles injury has been far from perfect. Lastly, top receivers Chris Godwin and Mike Evans sustained injuries as recently as last season.
After the aforementioned receivers, the Bucs have young receivers in Tyler Johnson, Jaelon Darden, and Cyril Grayson. Tight end Cameron Brate has made some plays this season, too, but has yet to score a touchdown.
Beckham would give the Bucs another quality receiver. He averaged 13 or more yards per catch each of the past four seasons — including the current one.
His respect for Brady will only help as Brady already successfully took another maligned star, Brown, under his wing in Tampa Bay.
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