A new Pewter Report Roundtable debuts every Tuesday during the Bucs’ regular season. Each week, the Pewter Reporters tackle another tough question. This week’s prompt: Which free agent do the Bucs HAVE to re-sign in 2024?

Scott Reynolds: The Bucs Won’t Be Better Without Mike Evans

The headline says it all, doesn’t it? Imagine the 2024 Buccaneers offense without Mike Evans. I don’t care who the head coach is next year – Todd Bowles or someone else. I don’t care who the offensive coordinator is next year – Dave Canales or somebody else. I don’t care who the quarterback is – Baker Mayfield or some other guy. Look at the current roster and tell me who is capable of replacing Evans’ yardage and touchdowns? Evans has 48 catches for 780 yards and seven touchdowns this season. That’s 239 more yards than Godwin and six more TDs.

Bucs WR Mike Evans – Photo by: USA Today

At age 30 Evans shows no signs of slowing down with a healthy 16.3-yard average as he’s cruising towards a 10th straight 1,000-yard season and another year of double-digit touchdowns. He’s a team leader, he’s icon, he’s a record-setter, and he’s the best offensive player in Bucs history. And he’s still trucking along and worth investing in for two to three more years. How much is Evans worth? Well, that will be interesting to see in free agency.

Will teams shell out more than $20 million for a receiver who turns 31 next year? History says no. I realize Evans doesn’t have the most clutch hands. He’s dropped six passes this year per Fox Sports, which is the fourth-highest number in the league. Some of those drops have been costly, as they would have been touchdowns. And that, combined with his age, could actually keep his market value down a bit, which could help the Bucs re-sign him.

Let’s remember that Evans was Jason Licht’s first-ever draft pick back in 2014. Seven years later, Evans helped the Bucs win their second-ever Super Bowl. Losing Evans in free agency wouldn’t bring the team any closer to the next one. There is a strong bond of mutual respect between Evans and Licht, and I think he returns to Tampa Bay for the right price, which I’m guessing will be $20 million or less. Safety Antoine Winfield Jr. is the top free agent priority in 2024, but Evans is right behind him because he is the Bucs’ primary weapon on offense – just like he’s been for the last decade.

Matt Matera: It Will Always Be Lavonte David

The Bucs have two starting inside linebackers that are set to hit free agency after this season. One is a future Bucs Ring of Honor member that looks like he would be in his prime if you didn’t already know his age. The other is thinking about money that he never got and decides to give effort when he wants to on an extremely inconsistent basis. There’s a reason why Lavonte David is so beloved by Bucs fans. What he’s doing still this today is incredible.

Bucs ILB Lavonte David – Photo by: USA Today

David looks like he hasn’t lost stepped as he leads the team with 90 tackles on the year. If he keeps on his average of nine tackles per game, David would end up with 153 tackles this season, which would be a career high for him. Do I need to you remind you that he’s in his 12th season? How is it even possible for him to continue to play at this level?

Over the past two offseasons the Bucs had three big time re-signings. It was cornerback Carlton Davis III in 2022, and fellow cornerback Jamel Dean along with David in 2023. Neither corner has lived up to their new deal. David, who got a pay decrease from his prior contract, has far exceeded his end of the bargain.

Unfortunately, a hip injury suffered in Week 11 against the 49ers may force David to miss some time. Then we’ll really see what life is like with out David in the middle. As important as David is for being a team leader and tackling machine, arguably his best trait is cleaning up the messes that Devin White can create at times. It’ll be White’s show if David is out, and next to him will be rookie SirVocea Dennis. I just don’t trust White to play consistently enough to lead the defense.

David hasn’t shown any signs of slowing down and could definitely play one more year if not two. White is going to want too much money, and the Bucs should let him walk. Eventually the keys will be handed over to SirVocea Dennis, but you can at least get another season with David running the ship while Dennis gets his feet wet as an every game starter. That’ll make the transition a little easier when the day comes when David is no longer on the team and he takes his place in the Bucs Ring of Honor – and hopefully Canton.

Bailey Adams: Bucs Can’t Let Chase “Money” McLaughlin Walk

Bucs K Chase McLaughlin – Photo by: USA Today

We all remember how bad the Bucs’ kicking game used to be, right? We remember how painful it was for this team to search for a reliable kicker? Of course we all do. Between Mike Nugent, Shane Andrus, Rian Lindell, Kyle Brindza, Roberto Aguayo, Nick Folk, Chandler Catanzaro and Matt Gay, it was an adventure. And not a fun one.

All of those kickers played for the Bucs between 2009 and 2019. The only decent kickers the team saw in those years were Connor Barth, Patrick Murray and Cairo Santos. That aspect of Tampa Bay’s game was a complete mess for a full decade until Jason Licht brought Ryan Succop into the mix in 2020.

Succop shored up the Bucs’ kicking issues from 2020-2022, then it was clear heading into this year that Tampa Bay needed more range out of its kicker. So Licht was tasked with finding another reliable kicker, which was a scary thought.

Enter Chase “Money” McLaughlin. The 27-year-old is on his seventh team since 2019, but he’s been enjoying his best run of his career so far in red, white and pewter. He easily beat out Rodrigo Blankenship for the job in the preseason and has gone on to convert 17 of his 19 field goals so far, including four of his five attempts from beyond 50 yards.

With Succop, the Bucs couldn’t even think about trying kicks from 50-plus. McLaughlin has been extremely reliable from anywhere, with his only two misses being a blocked 40-yarder against the Bears and a blocked 50-yarder against the Bills. He has also gone 17-of-17 on his extra point attempts.

So with numbers like that, why play the “Can we find a kicker?” game again in the offseason? Bring McLaughlin back for 2023 or the Bucs risk reopening the carousel of catastrophe again.

Josh Queipo: It’s Obvious … The Guy Who Has A Case For DPOY

There have been few bright spots on this Bucs team in 2023. The defense, once lauded as the strength of the team is now third in the NFL explosive passes allowed. The pass rush is schizophrenic. The run game is still abysmal and the Bucs’ passing attack suffers from self-inflicted wound after self-inflicted wound. While they are still in the thick of a division-title race many are already asking “Who’s available in the 2024 draft to help turn things around?”

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

That backdrop has to matter when determining who should be prioritized on bringing back for the next iteration of Bucs success. An over 30-receeiver looking to compete with the contracts of contemporaries more than a half-decade his junior? A journeyman quarterback who’s play oscillates between good and below average from week-to-week? An aging face-of-the franchise linebacker, who is currently winning his fight with Father Time but could be TKO’d at any moment as he plays the most physically brutal position in the game?

I find it hard for the cases for those players (who I all think are playing on the whole quite well this year!) to surmount that of the young member of the secondary who is almost single-handedly trying to hold the entire defense together.

Antoine Winfield Jr. can make a case that he is the best coverage player, best pursuit player and best pass rusher on the team this year. Week-in, week-out he is rarely the back-end defender being lamented for a coverage bust. As a center fielder he is one of the best in the business. He is on pace for 121 tackles, 24 tackles for loss (from a SAFETY!), 29 quarterback hits, 3.5 sacks, five forced fumbles, five fumble recoveries and 12 passes defensed. Plus, he finally got that long sought after interception two weeks ago against Tennessee.

The man quite literally does it all. To top it off he is a playmaker in a secondary that lacks that skillset. At 26 years old Winfield can be the leader of the next great Bucs defense and usher in a new generation of winning in Tampa Bay. If he isn’t the top priority this offseason then what are we doing?

Adam Slivon: Bucs Have A Good Thing Going With Baker Mayfield

Yes, there are bigger fish to fry for the Bucs in terms of free agents after the season ends, with Antoine Winfield Jr., Mike Evans, and Lavonte David all being important star players who have helped keep the team competitive.

Bucs QB Baker Mayfield – Photo by: USA Today

But when it comes to free agents the team HAS to re-sign, Baker Mayfield has just as much of an argument based on the value of the quarterback position. It is not a role that can be filled in with just anyone, and as it stands he has clearly been the best signal-caller within the NFC South this season. That has value, and at the very least, Mayfield has proven to be a viable bridge option and serviceable NFL starter.

There is even room for him to continue to grow in a stable environment and become more, which is why he remains a fit for the 2024 Bucs. Bringing Baker Mayfield back – at the right price – into the fold does not close the door on taking a rookie quarterback early. Instead, Mayfield gives Tampa Bay a floor while a rookie quarterback would be able to develop.

That time is valuable for them to settle in and it does not force the rookie to come in and light it up immediately. If this season has been any indication, by midseason next year the Bucs could even get a couple of draft picks back at the trade deadline from a quarterback-needy team should they choose to move on from Mayfield and roll with whoever they choose in the draft and Kyle Trask still on the roster as the backup.

For next year, keeping Baker Mayfield around won’t hurt by any means. Over the offseason, he quickly won over many of his teammates by bonding with them and showing his leadership and toughness. Ultimately, with Mayfield in the mix, the team will have more relevancy. Ownership should appreciate his national – albeit polarizing – popularity.

Parting ways with him and bottoming out won’t keep fans in the seats at Raymond James Stadium, and the last thing the team would want is a return to the dark days where the team competes for draft position rather than the division. Re-signing Baker Mayfield is a step toward remaining competitive for the long haul.