The Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ secondary was a complete mess in 2017. The addition of T.J. Ward before the season did not pan out, Ward simply did not play well in pewter and red. Vernon Hargreaves, whom we had high hopes for in his second year in the league, disappointed mightily. Chris Conte is not a starting caliber Safety in the NFL. Other than Rookie Justin Evans, who played solid in his first year, and the veteran Robert McClain, Brent Grimes is clearly the best Defensive Back on our team. Even at the high age of 34, Grimes still played at a Pro Bowl level. He did miss 3 games, which is somewhat concerning considering the fact that he only missed one game in the previous four seasons combined.
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The former undrafted Free Agent out of Shippensburg is known for taking care of his body and health, which explains that the 34-year-old has not slowed down very much so far. Grimes had 20 interceptions in the last five years. That is more than any Cornerback, other than Richard Sherman, during that time span. With Grimes making $6.5 million this year, he is certainly one of the biggest bargains in the NFL. To put this into perspective, Richard Sherman made $14 million last year. That is more than twice as much money, for hardly twice the efficiency.
With the Bucs’ secondary extremely thin, especially at Cornerback, it would only make sense to keep Grimes in Tampa. Cornerback is one of the weakest positions already, losing Grimes would be disastrous, as bolstering this position should be a priority for Jason Licht this offseason anyway. Re-signing Brent Grimes would be the first step in the right direction.
Edited by Morgan Adele
