Buccaneers GM receives vote of confidence from ownership
It doesn’t sound like Tampa Bay Buccaneers general manager Jason Licht is on any hot seat following the retirement of quarterback Tom Brady.
“All you have to do is look at our Super Bowl ring to talk about the job he’s done because that’s the ultimate goal,” Buccaneers co-owner Joel Glazer told the JoeBucsFan website about Licht. “He put together a Super Bowl team and won a championship, which is very rare in the NFL. Jason’s done a great job in all aspects—drafting, free agency, managing the team.”
Licht has served as Buccaneers’ general manager since 2014 and failed to build a roster that earned a playoff berth until he signed Brady in March 2020. With Brady leading the Tampa Bay offense, the franchise won Super Bowl LV in Feb. 2021 and completed three consecutive trips to postseason tournaments. Now that Brady has retired “for good,” Licht and co. are hoping that either free-agency acquisition Baker Mayfield or unproven 2021 second-round draft pick Kyle Trask can follow in the living legend’s footsteps.
Interestingly, Licht recently offered a comment similar to Glazer’s when he challenged anybody who questioned the front office going all-in on a quarterback in his 40s to “come to any of our three homes and look at our rings.” Before those somewhat defiant words, Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio wrote in February that the Buccaneers could be heading toward “a soft tank” in 2023 that could result in the team parting ways with both Licht and head coach Todd Bowles.
Glazer offered zero indication that’s the case ahead of the upcoming NFL Draft.
“We’re very pleased with the job he’s done,” Glazer continued about Licht. “Over time, you’re always learning and his experience and tenure are a big benefit for us in the long term because he’s been through so many different types of situations.”
That’s easy to say in late March, but it remains to be seen what Glazer and others will feel about Licht if the Buccaneers fall apart without having Brady as a stabilizing force in the lineup and inside the locker room.
