3 Buccaneers who won’t be back next year after crushing playoff loss
By John Buhler
DT. Ndamukong Suh. 48. Scouting Report. Tampa Bay Buccaneers. 2. player. Pick Analysis
Ndamukong Suh is in his mid-30s and this NFL mercenary could be walking
Ndamukong Suh may have been an elite player in his prime, but his Tampa Bay tenure might be coming to an end. The former Detroit Lions defensive tackle and Nebraska Cornhuskers superstar just turned 35 years old. Though he rarely misses games in his 12-year NFL career, Suh is never going to outgrow his on-field shenanigans. This is who he is and we just have to accept this.
He has his Super Bowl victory, he has his All-Pro nods, he has his Pro Bowls, but more importantly, he has his money that he invested wisely from his time with the Miami Dolphins. In short, Suh still has value in this league as a starting defensive lineman on a contending team. He is just not the Pro Bowler he once was. Most noticeably, he is a year-to-year player going forward.
All things equal, if the Buccaneers can only pay one of their free-agent defensive linemen, it would be Jason Pierre-Paul over him. Suh can certainly impact a game, but Pierre-Paul is more likely to bring the opposing quarterback to the turf over him based on the position he plays. While Suh could conceivably return, somebody else will presumably offer him more than the Buccaneers can.
In all honesty, Suh has two-to-three years left, but he may not be sticking around with Tampa Bay.