The market for interior offensive linemen keeps climbing, and that could put the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in a tricky spot when Cody Mauch’s next contract comes up.
Three recent extensions have pushed the price tag higher. The Falcons gave Matthew Bergeron a four-year deal worth $96 million, with $60 million guaranteed.
The Bills followed by signing O'Cyrus Torrence to a four-year deal with a max total of $78.4 million and $46 million guaranteed. Then the Titans locked up Peter Skoronski on a four-year deal worth a max total of $100 million, with $88 million guaranteed.
That run of deals raises a fair question for Tampa Bay: what happens if Mauch keeps trending up and hits that market after the 2026 season?
The Bucs took Mauch in the second round, and he was an immediate starter, lining up in every game for Tampa Bay from 2023-24. His progress hit a roadblock in 2025, though, when he underwent season-ending knee surgery after Week 2.
Mauch now appears to be fully healthy again, and he looks capable of getting back to the level that made him such an important piece of the interior line alongside center Graham Barton and left guard Ben Bredeson.
His rookie deal is expected to expire after the 2026 season, and if nothing gets done before then, he’ll be a free agent. Tampa Bay’s challenge goes beyond Mauch, too. The team also has to think about new contracts for players like Baker Mayfield, Vita Vea, Yaya Diaby and others on the roster.
That’s where the danger lies for the Bucs. If Mauch puts together a strong, healthy 2026 season, he could play his way into a price range Tampa Bay can’t comfortably match, especially with the interior line market already moving upward and other big decisions waiting on the books.
Whether Mauch reaches the same level as the players who just landed those extensions - and whether the Buccaneers can afford to keep him if he does - is something that will sort itself out over time.
In Other News...
Bucs Preseason QB Plan Suddenly Looks A Lot Less Certain
A quiet preseason week got a little more complicated for Tampa Bay when backup quarterback Jake Browning went down during a joint practice with the Jets. Browning appeared to suffer a lower back injury, left the field and was replaced by second-year quarterback Connor Bazelak, a development that immediately put some uncertainty around how the Buccaneers will handle the position in their first preseason game.
The timing matters because Tampa Bay had been working through its quarterback plan for the opener, and Brownings availability could shape how those reps are divided. If he cannot go, the Bucs may need to lean on Bazelak and Jalon Daniels to cover more of the work, which would turn a simple preseason tune-up into a more fluid evaluation period for the staff. [Read more 🡒]
Bucs Joint Practice Turned Ugly And Luke Goedeke Is Central
Joint practices are supposed to sharpen a team before the games start counting, but the Buccaneers and Jets managed to turn one into a full-on dustup. Tempers flared on the field between both sides during the session, with multiple scuffles breaking out as the two teams worked through camp reps and got a little too comfortable with the physical edge that often comes with August.
Luke Goedeke wound up right in the middle of the mess after a Jets interception by safety Jairus Monroe sparked a post-play confrontation, and another altercation later involving Jets defensive tackle Darrell Jackson and a Buccaneers offensive lineman pushed things far enough that the teams scrapped their second scheduled joint practice. For Tampa Bay, the episode leaves the usual training camp takeaway hanging over everything else: the line between competitive and chaotic got crossed quickly, and the details of how the Bucs handle the fallout will matter just as much as the next rep. [Read more 🡒]
Bucs Depth Chart Just Sparked A Real Defensive Competition Debate
The Buccaneers first official depth chart ahead of their preseason opener against the Jets offered an early look at how the defense is being sorted out, and it came with a few eyebrow-raisers. First-round rookie Rueben Bain Jr. is the lone rookie listed with a starting spot, while Vita Vea remains penciled in as the starting nose tackle even after missing practices, a reminder that these early charts can say as much about expectations as they do about current availability.
SirVocea Dennis also shows up as the starting middle linebacker, a noteworthy call in a camp where Josiah Trotter has drawn attention with more splash plays. The secondary has its own intrigue, with Benjamin Morrison sitting as a second-string cornerback despite limited practice time because of injury, and J.J. Roberts listed behind the starters at safety even though he has not been on the field because of injury. The chart does not settle the competition, but it does make clear that several jobs remain very much in flux. [Read more 🡒]