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There was never really any question that Shaquil Barrett would be back in red and pewter for the 2020 season. The only question was in what capacity? As the deadline to work out long term deals came to a close on Wednesday, Barrett and the Buccaneers were unable to reach that long term agreement so Barrett will sign his $15.8 million dollar franchise tag;
As expected, no long term deal was reached between the #Bucs and Shaquil Barrett and he will sign the franchise player tag worth $15.8 million.
— Rick Stroud (@NFLSTROUD) July 15, 2020
Barrett’s agent Drew Rosenhaus had filed a grievance with the NFL in the last week, seeking a Defensive End franchise tag - worth $2 million more than the $15.8 Barrett is slated to get. The grievance is still pending;
Bucs pass rusher Shaq Barrett is signing his franchise tender while he continues with his pending grievance against Tampa Bay on the amount of the tag. “There will not be a long-term deal at this time, but optimistic about Shaq's future in Tampa long term,” per @RosenhausSports.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) July 15, 2020
Ultimately, it’s the right deal for both sides right now. Yes, Barrett was seeking long term stability, but this is far more than he’s ever made in his career. As for the Bucs, they likely wanted to see Barrett do something close to replicating his 2019 performance where he was the NFL’s sack leader before they committed long term years and long term money into someone that had only performed at that level for one season.
The two sides will work on a long term deal for sure, but there’s a lot riding on what that contract would be as far as Barrett’s 2020 season is concerned. He’s either going to have another stellar season and really cash in or the Buccaneers could be looking at locking him up long term at a bit of a discount if he can’t live up to 2019’s numbers.