With their 31-23 loss to the Lions in Detroit during the NFL’s Divisional Round Weekend, the Bucs have officially entered the 2024 offseason. It’s going to be another interesting one for Tampa Bay, and it’s already started off on a rocky note with the departure of offensive coordinator Dave Canales, who left after one season with the Bucs to become the new head coach of the Panthers.

Now, Tampa Bay will have to conduct an offensive coordinator search for the second time in two years as attention shifts to the 2024 NFL season. The Bucs have some high-priority free agents to re-sign in NFL Comeback Player of the Year candidate quarterback Baker Mayfield, Pro Bowl wide receiver Mike Evans, legendary linebacker Lavonte David, All-Pro safety Antoine Winfield Jr. and kicker Chase McLaughlin.

In addition to all of that, general manager Jason Licht and his staff will look to nail yet another NFL Draft come April.

The NFL offseason is always a long one, but it’s not without its busy periods. Here are the NFL offseason important dates to know, at least through May:

NFL Offseason Important Dates to Know

January

North Dakota State G Cody Mauch – Photo by: USA Today

Jan. 29 – Senior Bowl Week begins in Mobile, Alabama

Jan. 30-Feb. 1 – Senior Bowl practices at Hancock Whitney Stadium in Mobile, Alabama

February

Feb. 1 – East-West Shrine Bowl in Frisco, Texas

Feb. 3 – Senior Bowl Game in Mobile, Alabama

Feb. 20 – Teams may begin placing the franchise or transitional tags on players beginning this date, with the deadline at 4:00 p.m. ET on March 5.

Feb. 27-March 4 – NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis, Indiana

March

March 1-4 – NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis, Indiana

Bucs FS Antoine Winfield Jr. – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

March 5 – At 4:00 p.m., teams will be outside the window of placing franchise or transitional tags on players.

March 11-13 – At Noon ET on March 11, the negotiation period (also referred to as “legal tampering period”) begins, and that runs through 3:59 p.m. ET on March 13.

March 13 – The 2024 League Year begins at 4:00 p.m. ET and with it, free agency officially opens and teams may begin finalizing contracts with unrestricted free agents.

March 24-27 – Annual League Meeting in Orlando, Florida

April

April 1 – Teams that hired new head coaches can begin offseason training programs.

April 15 – Teams with returning head coaches can begin offseason training programs.

April 17 – Deadline for teams to time, test, visit, interview, or conduct physicals with draft-eligible players at team facilities.

April 19 – Deadline for Restricted Free Agents (RFAs) to sign offer sheets.

April 24 – Deadline for RFAs’ prior clubs to exercise First Right of Refusal to RFAs who signed offer sheets; Deadline for teams to time, test, visit, interview, or conduct physicals with draft-eligible players at any location

April 25-27 – NFL Draft in Detroit, Michigan

May

Bucs OLB Joe Tryon-Shoyinka – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

May 2 – Deadline for teams to exercise fifth-year options for first-round picks from the 2021 Draft. (For the Bucs, it’s the deadline to exercise the fifth-year option for outside linebacker Joe Tryon-Shoyinka, the team’s No. 32 overall pick in 2021.)

May 3-6 or May 10-13 – Teams can hold their post-draft rookie mini camps Friday through Sunday or Saturday through Monday on either of the first two weekends following the NFL Draft.

Second Week of May – There’s not yet an official release date for the 2024 NFL Schedule, but in recent years, the league has announced its regular season schedule on the second Wednesday or Thursday of May.

May 13 – Rookie Football Development Programs begin.

May 20-22 – Spring League Meeting/Coach Accelerator in Nashville, Tennessee

Later this spring, the NFL and the Bucs will announce their offseason workout schedules, finalizing dates for organized team activities (OTAs) and mandatory mini camps. Training camp schedules will then follow over the summer.

Pewter Report’s Senior Bowl Coverage Begins On Monday

The entire Pewter Report staff will travel to Mobile, Ala. on Monday to cover the 2024 Reese’s Senior Bowl, which is the premier college all-star game. The Bucs have drafted five players from the Senior Bowl in each of the last two seasons.

Additionally, the Senior Bowl is also known as the biggest NFL job fair. With the Bucs needing an offensive coordinator to replace Dave Canales, and possibly wide receivers coach Brad Idzik if he follows Canales to Carolina, general manager Jason Licht and head coach Todd Bowles will have a dual purpose in Mobile.

Pewter Report will have complete coverage of the Senior Bowl practices and the Bucs’ offensive coordinator search on PewterReport.com, as well as on the Pewter Report Podcasts – energized by CELSIUS, the official energy drink of Pewter Report.

Try the new CELSIUS Essentials, which is engineered for the workout enthusiast in a bigger can with more caffeine to fuel your workout. There are four new delicious CELSIUS Essentials flavors – Orangesicle, Dragonberry, Blue Crush and Cherry Limeade.

For Senior Bowl week the Pewter Report Podcast will be in prime time – Monday through Wednesday – live at 7:00 p.m. ET. Bucs fans can watch the Pewter Report Podcast live on our PewterReportTV YouTube channel.

Pewter Report Podcast Schedule

Monday, January 29 – 7:00 p.m. ET
Tuesday, January 30 – 7:00 p.m. ET
Wednesday, January 31 – 7:00 p.m. ET