Is Odell Beckham Jr. actually a viable option for Bucs?

Without Rob Gronkowski in the fold, the Buccaneers are missing a key offensive weapon for Tom Brady in what is likely his final season in the NFL. Yes, they still have Mike Evans and Chris Godwin - once he returns from injury - and they added Russell Gage, Cade Otton, and Rachaad White during the off-season. However, Gronk was one of the most reliable and trusted targets for Tom Brady, especially when a game was on the line. Now, a lot of those targets are going to have to go elsewhere.

Charles Robinson of Yahoo! Sports pointed to three main teams that could be in the mix for Odell Beckham Jr. - the New Orleans Saints, the Dallas Cowboys, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Beckham, who joined the Los Angeles Rams last season, was on pace to be the Super Bowl LVI MVP before going down with a torn ACL. Now, his recovery process will make him unavailable until late into the 2022 season - but he could still have a huge impact in the playoffs.

The Bucs are already dealing with their own ACL issue as Chris Godwin’s timetable for return is still unknown. Given how much later Beckham’s injury happened, you’re likely looking at at least a month, if not more, after Godwin’s return before Beckham will be able to see the field. On top of that, the Bucs may be dealing with some hesitancy given how their last foray into the “diva” wide receiver market ended up blowing up on the sideline of a game.

Some believe Beckham is just misunderstood and at this stage in his career, he isn’t looking to be the “top dog,” just someone who can contribute and win a championship. Yes, he does have his ring but he likely wants an opportunity to contribute more to a Super Bowl than what he was able to back in February.

Beckham has expressed interest in playing with Brady once before, back when Brady was in New England. Beckham said;

“Two, three years ago there was a whole speculation and all that was going on and I was willing and ready to go over there at any point in time. That was always a dream of mine to play for Tom Brady—Tom Brady and [Bill] Belichick.”

Then earlier this year, Beckham tweeted about how great the Tom Brady series “Man In The Arena” was, sparking a Twitter exchange between the two;

The Buccaneers currently sit with around $12.5-million in cap space which very well could be enough to bring in Beckham given it will be a pro-rated deal for the games he does play. On top of playoff incentives he could hit, Beckham would have one last opportunity to join forces with Brady and make a run at a Lombardi Trophy.

The idea of Beckham in Tampa isn’t quite as crazy as it may have seemed four months ago and now the Bucs will be on the hunt for any and everyone they believe can help them win a championship. There’s no question that adding Beckham to a receiving corps that already has Evans, Godwin, and Gage makes the Bucs’ offense - on paper - impossible to stop.