The Tampa Bay Buccaneers made an extremely risky move Sunday.
After trading their 13th overall pick in this year's NFL Draft and a conditional pick in next year's draft, they acquired cornerback Darrelle Revis.
Revis has certainly been the best cornerback in the NFL over the past several seasons. The only problem is that he’s coming off a completely shredded ACL.
A bigger concern for the Bucs is they signed him to a six-year, $96 million contract.
Wow.
That’s a massive amount for a cornerback — let alone one that's coming off major reconstructive knee surgery.
Revis is being paid handsomely.
To put that in perspective for you, Revis is getting paid as much as a quality quarterback. That’s about as bold as you can get in the NFL.
I’m not taking away anything from Revis. He is a great player when he’s healthy.
I’m skeptical of this move, only because of his injury. Not everyone is Adrian Peterson. It’s still incredibly difficult to return from an ACL tear.
Speed is the most important characteristic of a shutdown corner in the NFL. If they can’t run, they can’t cover.
This is common sense, but not for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Nnamdi Asomugha is the perfect example of this.
Anyone who watched the Philadelphia Eagles the past two seasons knows he has been pretty terrible. Average receivers constantly beat him.
He was a completely different player in Oakland. Teams never even attempted to throw to his side of the field. When he arrived in Philadelphia, everything changed.
Asomuhga couldn’t run like he used to. Teams around the league quickly noticed this and made him pay. I fear this could happen to Revis, even though he’s only 27 years old.
The most significant part of this trade for Tampa Bay is no money is guaranteed. They owe Revis $16 million per season over the next six years.
Although no money is guaranteed, Tampa would never cut him after one season. They will pay him at least $32 million.
That’s a huge investment.
This is a big year for Tampa Bay. This is now coach Greg Schiano’s second year in the league. He’ll have to make some significant adjustments for this team to win.
The biggest key to the team's overall success is quarterback Josh Freeman. Schiano has been very critical of his play and his inconsistency. The Bucs need Freeman to play well in order to compete at a high level.
On paper, the NFC South is a very tough division with some great quarterbacks. I understand the organization's plan to bolster secondary. Playing Drew Brees, Matt Ryan and Cam Newton each twice a year is no easy task.
This was the right move for the Jets. They needed to part ways with Revis, because they weren’t going to pay him that kind of money.
It’s understandable, too. He is, after all, coming back from a major injury.
The Jets basically decided to clean house following another disastrous season.
The organization tried to catch lightning in a bottle after two straight AFC Championship Game appearances. They learned a hard lesson that many teams learn: Catching lightning in a bottle never works in the NFL.
The Jets got an invaluable high draft pick in return. They need to rebuild that entire roster.
It’s pretty clear Rex Ryan and Mark Sanchez won’t be around for much longer. They’re the only recognizable faces on the team.
I don’t completely understand Jets owner Woody Johnson. He fires his GM but keeps his coach? That doesn’t make very much sense.
Rex Ryan was just as much to blame as Mike Tannenbaum. Ryan likely won’t be retained following this season. The Jets are moving in another direction.
It’s pretty apparent that Mark Sanchez isn’t the answer for the Jets. He has regressed every season in the league. It’s time for both Sanchez and the team to move on.
The Revis trade was monumental for both the Jets and the Buccaneers. Both teams will be remembered for this trade for the immediate future.
It appears one team will get the better end out of this deal, but that team remains to be seen.
Reach the columnist at jbisaccia@asu.edu or follow him on Twitter @JosephBisaccia
