Washington stays with Bucs

TAMPA -- So what would make a free-agent offensive lineman who has spent his first four seasons in the NFL sitting on the bench re-sign with the team that kept him there?

Simply, Bucs lineman Todd Washington said Friday, a chance to start.

Washington, 25, a backup left guard/center with Tampa Bay since being drafted out of Virginia Tech in the fourth round in 1998, signed a four-year, $6-million deal Friday.

Washington is the first Bucs free agent to stay with the team, and his presence raises significant doubts about the future of starting center Jeff Christy.

"I pretty much looked at it as 'Do I want to sign a one-year deal or play for the NFL minimum?' or 'Do I want to get a long-term deal with a team that knows me and knows what I want?' " Washington said. "And the bottom line is, I want to be a starter and they have told me that I will have a chance to compete for that position.

"(Offensive line) coach Bill Muir and coach (Jon) Gruden insisted that they will be starting from scratch and that the best five players will get a chance to start. If (the lineup) was set in stone I wouldn't have done it."

Washington practiced mostly at left guard and center but spent time at right guard. The Bucs, however, signed free-agent left guard Kerry Jenkins to replace the retired Randall McDaniel. Jenkins clearly is the front-runner for that starting position, considering he spent the past four seasons starting for Muir with the Jets.

The Bucs drafted right tackle Cosey Coleman out of Tennessee two years ago, and he is said to have made great strides in his second season, his first as a starter.

That likely leaves Washington to battle with Christy, 33, at center. Christy, entering his 11th season, has three years left on a five-year, $17.5-million contract he signed in 2000. He is scheduled to make $2-million, $2.4-million and $3.29-million in base salary the next three seasons.

Washington, who started for Christy in the season opener while the veteran recovered from a knee injury, is younger and more affordable.

"Jeff is still a very good player, so it's kind of hard for me to talk about what's going to happen," Washington said. "I would rather leave that up to the coaches to decide. But given the choice, obviously I would prefer to play center. But we'll see."