Inside The Bucs’ Recent Contract Restructures

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The Bucs needed to make salary cap room for all of their recent moves in free agency. They had several players whose contracts they could have adjusted to create that room. Those included left tackle Tristan Wirfs, left guard Ben Bredeson, wide receiver Chris Godwin Jr., right tackle Luke Goedeke, defensive tackle Vita Vea, cornerback Zyon McCollum and safety Antoine Winfield Jr.

The team could also restructure the last year of quarterback Baker Mayfield’s contract and add a fourth void year, pushing his 2027 dead cap hit beyond the current $30,150,00 the Buccaneers are currently set to absorb.

Instead, the choices general manager Jason Licht and assistant G.M. Mike Greenberg made are very telling.

Bucs Restructure The Contracts Of CB Zyon McCollum And RT Luke Goedeke

General manager Jason Licht and assistant general manager Mike Greenberg chose to restructure the contracts of Luke Goedeke and Zyon McCollum, according to Greg Auman of Fox Sports.

Further details on the restructures were provided by NFL reporter Aaron Wilson.

What This Means For Luke Goedeke and Zyon McCollum

These restructures do not change the amount of cash either player actually gets paid this year. McCollum still gets the $14.594 million he was due this year and Goedeke still gets the $22 million he was due this year. Neither has taken a pay cut, just as Mike Evans never did throughout his career in Tampa Bay. Restructures merely adjust how the cash paid to a player is accounted for, by spreading the accounting out over future seasons.

Bucs Rt Luke Goedeke

Bucs RT Luke Goedeke – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

And because the cash will be paid this season but not fully be accounted for until future seasons, the future prorations cannot be discharged. This is known as dead cap money like Evans has the season – to the tune of $13.074 million.

McCollum’s cap hits are now $5,255,300 in 20206, $19,056,300 in 2027 and $19,650,300 in 2028 with a dead cap hit of $5,147,600 in 2029. For Goedeke those numbers are $7,474,950 in 2026 and matching $27,929,950 hits in 2027 through 2029.

Why These Contracts And Not Others?

Luke Goedeke’s restructure makes sense. He is one of the best right tackles in football and both his cash and cap hits are extremely reasonable going forward.

However, McCollum’s restructure is more curious. After a strong 2024 season, McCollum struggled in 2025, giving up five touchdowns on the year. But the reason for the restructure, and Goedeke’s as well, becomes clearer when you look at the details of their contracts. Both players had contract triggers that recently went into effect that guaranteed future salaries.

With those vesting guarantees, both players are likely to remain on the team’s roster in 2027 – although the team could save just over $8 million in cash and cap with a post-June 1st cut in 2027 if McCollum doesn’t show some progress this year.

Bucs Cb Zyon Mccollum And Eagles Wr Aj BrownBucs Cb Zyon Mccollum And Eagles Wr Aj Brown

Bucs CB Zyon McCollum and Eagles WR AJ Brown – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

By restructuring these two deals the Buccaneers have given themselves maximum flexibility with every other significant contract on their roster. Here is where they stand if Tampa Bay wanted to move on from each player with a multi-year veteran contract in 2027:

  • LT Tristan Wirfs – can save $26 million in cash and $11,069,004 in cap space
  • RB Kenny Gainwell – can save $4 million in cash and cap space
  • LG Ben Bredeson – can save $7 million in cash and $4.468 million in cap space
  • WR Chris Godwin Jr. – can save $22 million in cash and $13.702 in cap space
  • LB Alex Anzalone – can save $5 million in cash and cap space
  • S Antoine Winfield Jr. – can save $19.6 million in cash and $7.668 million in cap space

The 2026 season has all of the markings of crossroads year in Tampa Bay. Head coach Todd Bowles is facing a make-it-or-break-it season, and quarterback Baker Mayfield is in the last year of his contract. If the team does well this season they could lean in with additional investments.

But 2027 is also the first season of a new three-year cash spending window for the league. The Buccaneers could decide to cut and/or trade several of these players and start all over with a roster rebuild and a new regime if the 2026 season ends the way it did last year with another losing record and without a playoff appearance.

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