As the names clicked off the NFL Network ticker, you could sense the blood pressure rising around Tampa Bay.
- Revis hasn't been traded...
- Sean Smith to Kansas City
- DRC to Denver.
- Derek Cox to San Diego
- Greg Toler to Indy
- Dunta Robinson to KC
- Keenan Lewis to New Orleans
- Antoine Cason to Arizona
You take one peek at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers roster and you can understand why the tension level has increased.
Eric Wright didn't appear to be in the Bucs plans (but maybe he is now). Ronde Barber was moved to safety because the New Schiano Order didn't believe he could still cut it as a starter in the Schi-Fense.
And now E.J. Biggers is doing chest bumps with Raheem in D.C.
What is left sends shivers of bad memories of Nick Foley dropping 350 on the likes of Leonard Johnson, Danny Gorrer and Anthony Gaitor.
The search party has also been sent out for Myron Lewis. So far, there's more evidence that Bigfoot exists than Lewis is a player on the Bucs' roster.
Now I like Johnson and Gaitor - I've seen flashes of potential from those guys but I've also seen they aren't anywhere near ready to face Julio Jones or Steve Smith week in and week out.
Look at the 2013 opponents and you see Calvin Johnson, Mike Wallace and Larry Fitzgerald strolling unmolested through the Tampa Bay secondary.
If Foles can go wild on the Bucs woeful secondary, what will Tom Brady, Russell Wilson and Colin Kaepernick do?
The Bucs did make a significant upgrade with Dashon Goldson. The multi-Pro Bowl All-Pro safety will team with first round pick Mark Barron to protect the middle of the field - an area that was certainly a huge hole.
While upgraded safety play can help out the corners, they can't do their jobs.
A pass rush would help. But rather than get Osi or Elvis Dumervil or Cliff Avril, Tampa Bay got worse - letting leading sacker Michael Bennett leave.
They've put their eggs in to the flimsy basket of Adrian Clayborn and Daquan Bowers (if he can escape being Plaxico'd). Clayborn returns after an ACL injury. Bowers overcame his Achilles injury late last season and showed some flashes of brilliance - but how badly have the Bucs downgraded their top ranked run defense (especially with Roy Miller no longer clogging the middle)?
It looks terrible doesn't it Buc fans?
The Bucs preach patience. They know they have to get better at corner and depth on the defensive line. They weren't crazy about any of the free agent corners and apparently neither was the rest of the NFL. Sean Smith set the market at less than what Eric Wright got. By the by, a little fish from Miami told me he wasn't even worth THAT much.
The Bucs are crazy for Revis as been well documented throughout the blogosphere. Who wouldn't be? Even coming off the ACL injury he's still better than most corners in the league. At 100%, he is far and away the best.
Teamed with Goldson and a high draft pick, the Bucs would be instantly better.
Speaking of the draft, that may be where the Bucs are looking to get help. The cornerback position is flush with talent this year - not only at the top of the draft with Dee Milliner, Xavier Rhodes and Desmond Trufant but in later rounds too. The Honey Badger Tyrann Mathieu is a talented but troubled kid who might be around in the mid rounds. Johnthan Banks and Jordan Poyer could be options in round two or three.
Counting on rookies is an iffy proposition but Tampa Bay is buoyed by the 2012 draft haul that saw Doug Martin, Barron and Lavonte David make immediate impact.
If the Bucs fail to get Revis, they may head back to the free agent scrap heap and pick up a Antoine Winfield or DeAngelo Hall to play with Wright and the high pick.
Buc fans wanted Tampa Bay to go out and be aggressive but other than Dashon Goldson, there weren't many Vincent Jackson/Carl Nicks types out there - perennial All-Pros in the prime of their career (and not past it- i.e. Freeney or Abraham). They could have signed a guy for the fans psyche but would that have made the team significantly better?
Maybe a little. Truth be told, a beat up Brent Grimes or overrated Sean Smith isn't that much of an upgrade over what's already in house - or so the Bucs are telling us with their disinterest.
It's certainly not Revis and/or maybe even a high picked rookie.
The 2013 roster is still in transition folks and it won't be completely clear until after next month's draft.
Say it with me....Woosah.