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The Tampa Bay Buccaneers still need a viable third wide receiver to start the season, and free agent veteran T.Y. Hilton could fit that bill.
Hilton, a four-time Pro Bowler with the Indianapolis Colts, remains a free agent after the team took Cincinnati’s Alec Pierce in the draft. Hilton caught 23 passes for 331 yards and three touchdowns in 10 games last year, but he had 45 or more receptions, 500-plus yards and five touchdowns in each of the previous two seasons.
Even Hilton’s 2021 production would improve things for the Bucs’ receiver room. After Mike Evans and Chris Godwin, returning Bucs receivers mustered three touchdowns combined in 2021. Godwin tore his ACL in December 2021 and might not return in time for Week 1 of the 2022 season.
Hilton put it out there early in free agency that he’s available. He said “if you want me, come get me” during a March 14 interview with Hall of Fame wide receiver Michael Irvin for NFL Network.
For Hilton, joining forces with Bucs quarterback Tom Brady could conclude a can’t-beat-them-join-them scenario. Hilton acknowledged ahead of a December 2021 game against the Bucs that he’d never played for a Colts team that beat Brady, according to ESPN’s Mike Wells. The Bucs won that game 38-31.
It will likely take a sizable deal for the Bucs to land Hilton, as Spotrac projects a $6.2 million annual salary for him. He made $8 million with the Colts in 2021. The Bucs have $12.9 million in salary cap space, per Spotrac, with draft picks and key free agents to sign.
Rumored destinations for Hilton include the Chicago Bears, Dallas Cowboys, Green Bay Packers and New England Patriots.
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Pat McAfee Suggested Bucs for Hilton Before 2021 Season
Former Colt turned sports show host Pat McAfee suggested the Bucs as a destination for Hilton in 2021.
“T.Y. Hilton’s going to go somewhere and be very good,” McAfee said on “The Pat McAfee Show” in February 2021. “Look for him to probably go to Tampa, to be honest with you. Look for T.Y. to probably go to Tampa.”
Hilton ultimately stayed with the Colts, but the Bruce Arians connection to the Bucs remains for Hilton. Arians, a former Colts offensive assistant, moved to a front office role with the Bucs after stepping down from coaching last month. Bucs offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich doesn’t anticipate significant changes on offense with the team moving from Arians to head coach Todd Bowles, according to Greg Auman of The Athletic.
“I think Bruce Arians was the reason we drafted T.Y. Hilton,” McAfee said on his show. “I was not in the war room. … The story goes that right before our pick, somebody selected who we were going to lock in. Then as the clock was going, we were thinking about trading or moving, and Bruce Arians said, ‘There’s this wide receiver down in Florida. He is a guy.’ [They] draft him, that’s all she wrote.”
Hilton has 631 receptions, 9,691 yards and 53 touchdowns in his career. He dealt with injury last season but played 15 games in 2020. He notably has played with three different quarterbacks in the past three seasons: Jacoby Brissett, Philip Rivers and Carson Wentz.
Bucs Need to Outbid Colts?
The Bucs may need to outbid the Colts for Hilton since the veteran receiver teased a potential comeback and Colts general manager Chris Ballard confirmed conversation between the parties.
On April 30, during the draft, Hilton reacted to a Colts fan site tweet about the receiver’s potential future, writing, “hummm … let me think about it” in his response. Ballard expressed his belief that Hilton “can still play productive football” this season, according to USA Today’s Colts Wire.
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