Voluntary offseason programs are officially underway, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers will have one of their key contributors ready to roll.
According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, LG Nick Leverett just signed his exclusive rights free agent tender today, which wasn’t much of a surprise.
Buccaneers’ starting guard Nick Leverett signed his exclusive rights tender today, per source.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) April 17, 2023
He was an ERFA, meaning he wasn’t able to negotiate with other teams as soon as he was tendered, so he was always expected to be back in the mix.
The Bucs originally signed Leverett as an undrafted free agent in 2020, but it wasn’t until 2021 that he made his first couple of appearances for the team.
So, given the fact that he hadn’t accrued three NFL seasons, he was an ERFA instead of a restricted free agent, meaning the Bucs were pretty much in control of his destiny.
A former practice squad player mostly, Leverett started ten games at LG last season, taking over for the struggling rookie Luke Goedeke, who might still get another chance at some point in the season after entering the league as a second-round pick.
The Bucs will now have Baker Mayfield under center, so they’ll definitely need to do a great job of keeping him safe from rival defenders, as they’ll have little margin for error if they intend to make another postseason run.
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