Brent Grimes and Buccaneers are talking; Bucs losing interest in Revis?

According to Pro Football Talk, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are talking to Brent Grimes. The Bucs supposedly see Grimes as a "Plan B" in case they don't land Darrelle Revis. And, again per Pro Football Talk, the Bucs are quickly losing interest in Darrelle Revis with the sticking point once again being the use of a 2013 first-round pick.

This attitude wouldn't make much sense, however. While Brent Grimes was a very good player, he is recovering from an Achilles injury. And yes, Darrelle Revis is recovering from an ACL injury -- but Achilles injuries are another beast altogether, harder to return from and even those who return from Achilles injuries often lose something in the process. Moreover, Grimes will be 30 once the season starts and can hardly be seen as a long-term solution. Grimes would be a nice addition, but he's not someone you can count on to re-vamp the broken Tampa Bay secondary.

Grimes is also nowhere near the caliber player Revis is. If the Buccaneers do sign Grimes, I still would not count them out in the Revis trades, despite Pro Football Talk's report. With Eric Wright still under contract and possibly forced to restructure, the Bucs could certainly decide to go into the season with Grimes, Wright and a drafted cornerback. Yet it is entirely possible that the Buccaneers sign Grimes, who should not be too expensive given his age and injury, and still trade for Revis, saying goodbye to Eric Wright in the process.

This kind of report is generally a simple result of a leverage play from one side, in this case the Buccaneers. They may be hoping to increase the pressure on the Jets to deal Revis, or they may indeed say goodbye to the notion if a deal is not struck soon. With this kind of rhetoric it would not be surprising to see a deal struck by tomorrow, when the league meetings end, or not at all.