Buccaneers Winfield Jr Becomes Highest Paid Safety

Tampa Bay Buccaneers General Manager Jason Licht does nothing if not deliver on his promises. He said he would lock up the Bucs key players, and he has done it. Baker Mayfield, Mike Evans, and now Antoine Winfield Jr, aka, the best safety in the league.

He has become not just the highest paid safety, but the highest paid defensive back in NFL history. And is also the first time a safety has become the highest paid DB, which I did not know. It is a four-year $84.1 million deal with $45 million guaranteed. It also passes Derwin James as the highest paid safety (he had $19 million a year).

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This deal is well deserved considering how well Winfield Jr has been playing since entering the league in 2020. He was a major component of their Super Bowl run and had a season for the ages in 2023. Six sacks, six forced fumbles (led the league), 3 interceptions, and 12 passes defended. All of which were career highs for him and what led him to his first all-pro nomination.

With Winfield Jr now locked up for the foreseeable future, every major Bucs free agent has been signed to the long-term. The next player that will Licht will try to get done is Tristan Wirfs. A new deal for him would also help with lowering his cap in 2024, the same thing that Licht has done with Winfield Jr. I’m very happy with this move as Winfield Jr is easily the best safety right now and deserved this deal.