The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are expected to pay safety Antoine Winfield Jr. the highest salary in the NFL.
The Buccaneers applied the franchise tag to Winfield Jr. on March 5, guaranteeing him a salary of $17.1 million in 2024.
The only two players still on the roster from the offseason who did not sign a long-term contract are Tee Higgins and Antoine Winfield Jr., according to Schefter. It is anticipated that Winfield’s new contract, which would make him the highest-paid safety in the NFL, will be completed, according to sources. Right now, Derwin James of the Chargers earns $19 million annually, the highest salary of any safety in the NFL.
Since the Buccaneers selected him in the second round of the 2020 NFL draft, Antoine Winfield Jr., a safety, has emerged as one of the league’s top players. He won the Big Ten n Tatum-Woodson Defensive Back of the Year award for Minnesota in 2019.
In his pre-draft assessment of Winfield Jr., NFL analyst Lance Zierlein noted, “Winfield isn’t a star but he’s a quality building block with the toughness and intelligence to help fortify the back end.”
When Tampa Bay won its second Super Bowl as a rookie, Winfield Jr. started all 16 games during the regular season and finished with 18 tackles, 2 pass deflections, 1 interception, and 1 forced fumble in three postseason games.
In 2021, Winfield Jr. was selected to the Pro Bowl for the first time. After playing every game and finishing with career highs in tackles (122), sacks (6.0), pass deflections (12), interceptions (3), and leading the NFL with six forced fumbles, he was named to the first team of the NFL All-Pro team for the first time in 2023.
Another NFL player from a second generation is Winfield Jr. His father, Antoine Winfield Sr., played in the NFL for 14 seasons, winning three Pro Bowls and was named an NFL All-Pro in 2008. The Buffalo Bills selected him in the first round out of Ohio State in 1995.
James inked a four-year, $76.5 million contract extension with the Chargers in August 2022, making him the highest-paid safety in the NFL based on total contract value.
The initial deal for Winfield Jr. was for $7.3 million over four years. In order to sign Winfield Jr. to a new deal, the Buccaneers have until July.
In a post on X on March 5, Schefter stated, “formally, the Bucs are placing their franchise tag on S Antoine Winfield Jr., but this is really just a stopgap until the two sides can work out a long-term deal that they continue to work on and want to get done, per sources.
