Tampa Bay Buccaneers trade Aqib Talib to New England Patriots

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have traded cornerback Aqib Talib to the New England Patriots. Details of the trade have not been announced yet.

Talib first joined the Buccaneers as the 20th overall pick in the 2008 NFL Draft, having played his college football at Kansas. Over his career, Talib turned into the best cornerback on the Tampa Bay roster, notching 18 interceptions and 53 passes defensed in five years, but violent incidents and suspensions marred his stint with the Bucs.

When Greg Schiano took over as Tampa Bay head coach, it appeared he was ready to accept Talib as a "Buccaneer man". Talib supposedly did everything asked of him over the offseason and had seemingly straightened out his life. Unfortunately, he had to serve a four-game suspension for Adderall use this season. Talib has one game left on that suspension.

Losing Talib significantly weakens the Tampa Bay secondary, which has looked shaky throughout the season. With reports surfacing that Eric Wright, now the Bucs' top cornerback, could be suspended for four games, this seems like a weird time to cut ties with the best cornerback on the roster.

UPDATE: Trade details have been announced.