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RICK STROUDFree agency and the salary cap mean today could be the last home game for some of the Bucs.
TAMPA - The distance from the locker room, through the tunnel and onto the field at Raymond James Stadium is only a few hundred feet. But it will be a long, sentimental journey today for a few Bucs players who could be making their final home appearance.
Take a lasting look at Warren Sapp, the embodiment of the franchise for nine seasons.
Despite being named to his seventh Pro Bowl this week and needing two sacks to break the club's career mark held by Lee Roy Selmon, the 31-year-old Sapp is in the final year of his contract.
He has not received an offer to remain in Tampa Bay and is almost certain to test free agency.
"In this game, the one thing you want to be able to do is receive some different offers so you can see what you're worth and who really covets your play," Sapp told the Associated Press.
"Sure, there's an extra bit of sentiment with the guy I've played with for nine years now and he's a great friend," safety John Lynch said of Sapp. "And just not knowing ... he could very well be here, but you never know. I think I'll just try to go out and really enjoy it, and I would hope the fans would respond as such."
Even Lynch, who has two years remaining on a contract that will pay him $4.1-million in 2004, could be asked to restructure it before the team pays a $1-million roster bonus in spring.
Lynch, 32, missed two games with a recurring nerve injury in his shoulder but thinks he can play several more seasons.
"I think I have a lot of football left in me," Lynch said. "But just like anything, you don't take anything for granted. You go out there every time and say this could be my last game."
If the defending world champions have learned anything this season, it's how fleeting fame and stability can be.
Last month, Keyshawn Johnson - the Bucs' leading receiver for three seasons - was deactivated for the final six regular-season games. This week, general manager Rich McKay, who was affiliated with the Bucs for nearly three decades, took a similar position with the Falcons.
Coach Jon Gruden, declared the victor in a power struggle over personnel decisions, figures to make some drastic changes. That's troubling to the 23 players who remain from the 2001 team.
"I've actually got on my wall of fame at home, seven years in a row of Minnesota, each team (pictured), and in my seventh year, there's three guys left," quarterback Brad Johnson said. "That's just the transition of the NFL, either guys getting older or bringing in better players through free agency. That's just the way it is. You expect it. That's what we talked about last year after the Super Bowl. You're going to lose players, you're going to gain players. Hopefully, you bring in better players than the year before. But on the wall, the pictures slim down. You just hope you're not the one."
Admittedly, Gruden is a big fan of Sapp. The four-time All-Pro first-team selection says he does not expect to be the highest-paid player at his position. Gruden, who knows Sapp's sack totals are declining and that Tampa Bay has some salary-cap concerns, is not guaranteeing anything.
"He's a personal favorite of mine. I'm not shy about that," Gruden said. "He's a personal favorite of a lot of people here, and we want to continue the relationship, obviously, but we still respect free agency for what it is.
"We want him back. We're going to do everything to get him back. I don't look at this as his last game. I'm not a fortune-teller, a palm reader or anything like that. It's a situation that's going to have to be worked out."
According to Sapp, the Bucs would be in better shape if they had restructured his contract after the 2000 or 2002 season, as he had been led to believe they would.
In fact, Sapp suggests McKay was reluctant to do so because he had been plotting a move to the division rival Falcons.
"We see why now," Sapp told the Associated Press. "He had no intentions of making this team better because he was intending on leaving. Why would you build something special and then leave it? You've got to leave yourself some options when you go to the next team, right?"
One option for the Bucs would be to move Anthony McFarland to Sapp's position, where he played last weekend and had a sack and forced fumble.
"If you don't think I'm a productive player for you, then don't sign me," Sapp said. "Make me a (bad) offer, and I'm gone. It's that simple."
Jermaine Phillips and Dwight Smith are two young safeties the Bucs would like to have earn some playing time together. Running back Thomas Jones, who has more than 250 total yards the past two games, will become a free agent, and the Bucs are trying to re-sign him. That would seem to make Michael Pittman expendable.
Even Johnson, the Bucs' steady quarterback, will have to compete to keep his job next fall. Already, there is talk Gruden might be interested in Jaguars free-agent quarterback Mark Brunell.
"I expect it. For me, it's Shane Matthews, Jim Miller," Johnson said. "I've got the whole list. For me, I always consider it would be fun to play with that guy. I may learn something from him. But there's going to be change next year across the board. You expect it. That's why you don't get surprised by anything."
Don't be surprised if this is the last game for nearly every member of the starting offensive line. Cosey Coleman is a free agent. Kerry Jenkins, Roman Oben and Kenyatta Walker could be sent packing. Fullback Mike Alstott has a long road to recovery from a herniated disc in his neck. Most of the offensive coaches do not have contracts for 2004.
"You can't predict the future in this league, particularly," Lynch said. "You never know how it's going to unfold, but it has entered my mind, and I'm well aware that it could be the final time we all come out."