Bucs coach Bruce Arians worried about keeping his defense together

“Oh, yeah. To me, it’s the whole defense,” Arians told ESPN’s Jenna Laine. “You can’t get ’em all, but … those young guys grew. We can’t let that go. I don’t care who’s my quarterback. We’ve gotta have a defense.”

Outside linebacker Shaquil Barrett is the most notable defender hitting free agency, and he should be in line for a lucrative payday after compiling an NFL-high 19 1/2 sacks last season. Many of Barrett’s defensive teammates are also set to hit the open market, including defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul, defensive end Carl Nassib, defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh, defensive tackle Beau Allen and defensive tackle Rakeem Nunez-Roches.

On the offensive side of the ball, it doesn’t sound like Arians is all that concerned about who’s under center. The head coach did admit it’s tough to have any clarity on the quarterback position considering the uncertainty of free agency.

“You don’t know who’s available,” Arians said. “You just sit there and wait to see, is there someone available? If not, is this a better option? That’s the problem. You get about two days to decide in the legal tampering period.”

One of the team’s options will naturally be Winston, who spent the first five seasons of his career in Tampa Bay. Winston set career-highs in passing yards (5,109) and touchdowns (33) in 2019, but also set a career-high (and led the NFL) with 30 interceptions.