Signing Trey Hendrickson would essentially mean the end of Mike Evans’ time with the Buccaneers
There’s no way the Bucs can afford both in a logical sense.
Free agency is officially a week away, with the tampering period coming up at 12 p.m. ET on Monday, March 9.
In other words: things are about to get even hotter than they are now.
We’ve seen a flurry of advanced moves ahead of the start of the new league year, whether they be trades, cuts, extensions, or even retirement. The spout will really open up after the weekend and plenty of big names will begin the process of finding new homes.
One big name in particular, Cincinnati Bengals EDGE Trey Hendrickson, could find himself as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ top pass rusher when it’s all said and done, too.
Would Trey Hendrickson even be interested in playing for the Buccaneers?
According to Adam Schefter, the answer is “yes”.
“I think that he would love to be in Tampa,” Schefter said on a recent episode of the Pardon My Take podcast. “He lives in Ponte Verde, [but] I don’t think the Jaguars have the requisite cap room for him. Tampa would be a great fit. I think in a perfect world, Trey would like to stay in Florida. No state income tax. But, he’s also open to going to the best possible situation.
“If Trey has a pick, I think he’d like to end up (with the Bucs) but we will see if it works out that way.”
Schefter is right. Hendrickson would be a great fit for the Buccaneers and would certainly be the size upgrade Todd Bowles talked about at the combine. For instance, Haason Reddick, the guy brought in to be last year’s No. 1 pass rusher, stands around 6-foot-1, 240 pounds, while Hendrickson is 6-foot-4, 264 pounds.
But back to the fit, Hendrickson is a powerful, stand-up pass rusher who can also play with his hand in the dirt. He has a wide array of pass rush moves and plenty of experience at 31 years old. Bowles could use in him in a variety of ways thanks to his versatility, which is always a plus for any defender in his system.
His age, along with his projected price tag and season-ending hip injury, are certainly aspects worthy of discussion. Just how much does he have left in the tank and how much will the injury affect his first year back on the field? Couple those with Pro Football Focus’ projected price tag of a one-year, $21 million deal should easily make one pause and weigh the pros and cons with this kind of move.
There’s also another element to consider and while it has nothing to do with Hendrickson – but it has everything to do with franchise legend Mike Evans.
Mike Evans is gone if the Buccaneers sign Trey Hendrickson
This is just simple math and the position both players are in. There’s just no way the Buccaneers would be able to afford both of these guys and be able to fill other positions, as well as afford the draft class, have in-season operating money, and pay the practice squad.
Bucs’ current cap space and future expenses
- Current cap space: $19,962, 510
- Projected draft class cost: $5,560,452
- In-season operating money: $3-5 million
- Practice squad cost: $3-5 million:
- Total effective cap space after the above expenses: $4.402 million-$8.402 million
Sure, Jason Licht could treat this as a game of Madden and sign both guys to deals they deem worthy and give them a big signing bonus and tack on a bunch of void years in order to reduce the Year 1 cap hit, but that’s not how he operates and it’s not how good GMs operate across the NFL.
Tacking on multiple void years that spread out prorated money for a 31-year-old and a 33-year-old who are both coming off big injuries is never wise to do and I’m willing to bet big Licht won’t do it.
Evans won’t come back for pennies, either, as he shouldn’t. He’s played under some pretty team-friendly deals over the course of his career, so he deserves a shot to max out his worth over these final years. Especially if a team that’s willing to pay him is a Super Bowl contender.
Overall, this is just one of the many tough decisions/scenarios the Buccaneers will have to face this offseason. Towing the line between keeping the top in-house guys that can provide the most help, while figuring out which outsiders to bring in, will easily play a big role in how this vastly important 2026 season turns out.
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