The Tampa Bay Buccaneers made 2 major deals with veterans shortly before the regular season began, bringing back Pro Bowl quarterback Baker Mayfield on a 3-year, $165 million contract and Pro Bowl defensive tackle Vita Vea on a 1-year, $30 million contract extension.
After an 0-3 start, they can’t trade the injured Mayfield — even if they should — and especially now that he’s out for at least 3 weeks with an injured thumb.
Vea, however, spent the offseason pining for a trade. It might still happen if the Buccaneers continue to go in the tank, with Bleacher Report’s Kristopher Knox proposing a pair of trades that would send Vea to either the Buffalo Bills or the San Francisco 49ers.
Bucs Could Get Critical Draft Capital in Return
For the Bucs, it’s a deal that would almost certainly bring back a 2nd-round pick, and for Vea, it would mean a chance to win another Super Bowl by landing with a contender.
Vea, even at 31, is still considered 1 of the NFL’s elite interior defensive linemen.
“While the 2018 No. 12 overall pick is under contract through 2027, there’s no guarantee he’ll play out his contract in Tampa,” Knox wrote on October 2. “The Bucs could save $11 million in cap space by trading him in the spring or $24 million by trading him after June 1. That could be a real possibility if the team continues to flounder and looks to rebuild in the offseason. With the Buccaneers’ season trending in the wrong direction, Vea could welcome an opportunity to join a playoff contender. He will turn 32 in February, but he remains a top-tier interior defender who could help a team pursuing a Super Bowl.”
Vea was headed into the final season of his 4-year, $71 million contract in 2026.
“ESPN sources: Two-time Pro-Bowl DT Vita Vea and the Buccaneers reached agreement today on a one-year extension for $30 million, tying him to Tampa Bay for two more seasons,” ESPN’s Adam Schefter wrote on his official X account on August 19. “He gets $6 million in new money this season.”
Bucs Appear Headed for Complete Reboot in ’27
There is little hope the Buccaneers will figure out a way to bounce back and be a contender in 2026 — even playing in the turgid NFC South Division, where at 0-3 they are just 1 game back from the 3-way tie for 1st place between teams with identical 1-2 records in the Atlanta Falcons, Carolina Panthers, and New Orleans Saints.
If the Bucs truly go down the tubes, it would put them in an interesting predicament — with another high draft pick, would they go after a quarterback in the talent-rich 2027 draft class?
Bucs Trade Pitch Sends DT Vita Vea to Super Bowl Contender