In just five years, Shaq Barrett carved out a special place in Bucs history.

The announcement of his forthcoming release on Tuesday means he won’t get a Year 6 to add on to his legacy in Tampa Bay, but there’s no denying what an impressive legacy it is.

Signed by the Bucs to a one-year, $4 million deal in 2019, Shaq Barrett was simply looking for a chance. Originally an undrafted free agent out of Colorado State, the 6-foot-2, 250-pound pass rusher was a rotational piece for the Broncos from 2015-2018. He had 14 sacks over those four seasons and earned a Super Bowl ring, then he signed with Tampa Bay for a chance to be a full-time starter.

Bucs OLB Shaquil Barrett – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

All he did with that chance is instantly become one of the most prolific pass rushers in franchise history.

He finishes his Bucs career fifth on the team’s all-time sack leaderboard with 45. Barrett trails only Gerald McCoy (54.5), Simeon Rice (69.5), Warren Sapp (77.0) and Lee Roy Selmon (78.5).

Not only that, but Barrett ends his Tampa Bay career tied for the fourth-most forced fumbles in team history. He’s in good company, too, as he’s knotted at 15 forced fumbles with Sapp and Ronde Barber, a pair of Pro Football Hall of Famers and team legends.

A slow start to 2022 and then a season-ending Achilles injury began the decline of Barrett’s time in Tampa Bay, but there’s no doubt that he did enough between 2019-2021 to cement his spot in franchise history.

Shaq Barrett Began His Bucs Career With A Record-Breaking Season

Because of the brief golden era that the Bucs experienced from 2020-2021 with Tom Brady, it’s sometimes easy to forget just how dominant Shaq Barrett was in 2019. Tampa Bay wasn’t a playoff team that year when “Sack Barrett” burst onto the scene.

Bucs OLB Shaq Barrett – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

In terms of individual seasons, Todd Bowles said Tuesday that what Barrett did in 2019 ranks among the very best.

“It was one of the best I’ve seen, especially that I’ve coached,” Bowles said. “He came in, hair on fire. He had a point to prove. He was getting by every offensive tackle in the league.”

After picking up a sack in the season opener against the 49ers, Barrett got to Cam Newton three times in a win over the Panthers the following week. In a loss to the Giants the next week, Barrett sacked Daniel Jones four times.

He got another sack against the Rams in Week 4, giving him nine (NINE!) through the first month of the season.

One year earlier, Jason Pierre-Paul finished with 12.5 sacks and became the first Buc to reach double-digit sacks in a single season since Simeon Rice totaled 14.0 in 2005. So through four games of the 2019 season, it was a foregone conclusion that Barrett would make it two years in a row that the team would have a double-digit sacker.

After getting shut out over the next two games, Barrett got his 10th sack in a loss to the Titans. Then, his sights were on the franchise’s single-season sack record of 16.5, held by Super Bowl XXXVII champion, Bucs Ring of Honor inductee and Pro Football Hall of Famer Warren Sapp.

Barrett’s 10th sack started a streak of seven straight weeks with at least a half-sack. He had a half-sack at Seattle, then notched one against Arizona and Atlanta before getting two more at Jacksonville. Sacks against Indianapolis and Detroit kept the streak going and that meant, with two weeks to go, he was tied with Sapp at 16.5 sacks.

Warren Sapp and Bucs OLB Shaq Barrett – Photo courtesy of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Houston kept Barrett off the board in Week 16, however, so it all came down to Week 17.

The final game of the 2019 season will likely always be remembered for Jameis Winston’s game- and season-ending pick-six in overtime. But earlier in that game, Shaq Barrett made Bucs history.

His first sack of the day gave him the single-season record, but he wasn’t done. Barrett got another, and then another.

It was his third game of the season with three-plus sacks and in the end, he had four multi-sack games on his way to an NFL-leading 19.5 quarterback captures. Pair that with six forced fumbles and you have quite the debut season from a guy who was a bargain free agent signing.

It all started with a one-year, $4 million deal, and it ended with a record-breaking season. Only that wasn’t the end, as he really was just getting started.

Shaq Barrett Dominated On The Bucs’ Road To Super Bowl LV

Bucs OLB Shaquil Barrett and Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes – Photo by: USA Today

After receiving the franchise tag in the 2020 offseason, Shaq Barrett remained in Tampa for a second season. It didn’t start as hot as the 2019 campaign did, but his first two sacks of the year came in Denver against his former team. He wasn’t nearly as dominant throughout the season as he was the previous year, but another two-sack game came at the right time. The Bucs were 7-5 and coming out of their bye week when he got to Kirk Cousins twice in a 26-14 home win over the Vikings.

For the season, Barrett had eight sacks. He may not have reached double digits in the regular season, but he was back to his transcendent self during the team’s playoff run, particularly when it mattered most.

In the NFC Championship Game win over the Packers, he totaled three sacks and seven pressures. Then, in the Bucs’ Super Bowl LV victory over the Chiefs at Raymond James Stadium, he was part of the defense’s dominance over Patrick Mahomes. Tampa Bay didn’t allow Kansas City to reach the end zone, and pressure from Barrett was a major reason why. He was only credited with one sack, but he had eight pressures in the game.

So between the NFC Championship Game and Super Bowl, Barrett had a combined 15 pressures – the most by any player during a two-game span that season. In the span of two seasons, Shaq Barrett had led the NFL in sacks and became a two-time Super Bowl champion.

Even In A Tough 2023 Season, Shaq Barrett Got A Special Moment

Bucs OLB Shaq Barrett – Photo by: USA Today

Shaq Barrett reached 10 sacks again in 2021, earning his second Pro Bowl selection in three years. Things began to decline for him early in the 2022 season before he suffered a torn Achilles in a Week 8 loss to the Ravens. That cost him the rest of the season.

The 2023 season wasn’t the return to form that he and the Bucs were hoping for either, as he reached just 4.5 sacks despite still leading the team in pressures. But that doesn’t mean that Barrett didn’t have one last memorable moment.

His return to the field in Week 1 was triumphant in its own right, as he fought back not only from the Achilles injury but from a personal tragedy. The Barrett family lost their 2-year-old daughter, Arrayah, in the offseason to a drowning accident at home. That made for an emotional return to football for Shaq and his family, and then the big moment came in Week 2 when he and the team returned to Raymond James Stadium.

With the Bucs leading the Bears late but needing to seal the deal, Shaq Barrett read Justin Fields’ eyes perfectly, dropping back and making an athletic play to pick off his screen pass. Since Chicago was backed up against its own goal line, Barrett was in position for a pick-six. He took a few steps toward the end zone and then had his teammates to push him across for his first career touchdown. Barrett dedicated that touchdown to his late daughter immediately afterwards.

Shaq Barrett Goes Down As One Of The Bucs’ Best-Ever Free Agent Signings

Bucs OLB Shaq Barrett – Photo by: USA Today

Just as the Bucs have a special place in the hearts of the Barrett family, Barrett and his family have a special place in the hearts of the Bucs and their fans. General manager Jason Licht said Tuesday in Indianapolis that calling Barrett to let him know about his release was a phone call he dreaded making.

“He’s an incredible person,” Licht said. “I could go on and on. Obviously a tremendous player. Calling him, letting him know – [we] let him know on Friday — I did not want to make that call. … He actually calmed me down on the phone. He was [talking about] how much the organization has meant to him, what we’ve done for him, when actually it really should’ve been the other way around. Jordanna, his whole family, they’ll always be Bucs.”

The person Barrett was will be missed in Tampa, and the player he was helps round out his legacy as well. With 45 sacks, 15 forced fumbles, 90 quarterback hits and three interceptions over 70 games, he cemented himself not only as one of Licht’s best-ever free agent signings, but one of the top free agent signings in Buccaneer history.

“He helped our Super Bowl run, he helped us be successful,” Bowles said. “He’s a big part of the success we’ve had over the last five years. That doesn’t go unnoticed.”

It certainly didn’t go unnoticed by the Buccaneer faithful, and you won’t find anyone with a good argument against Shaq Barrett having a special place in Bucs history.

And maybe, some day, he’ll also have a special place in the Bucs Ring of Honor inside Raymond James Stadium.