TAMPA - Everything about it made sense, and that's why safety John Lynch is a Bronco.
He had a chance to sign with the Patriots, Seahawks, Lions or Jets, but it was the organization, the team, the defensive restructuring and the system that made the difference.
"It was really a gut feeling, when I visited," Lynch said Tuesday after signing a three-year, $9-million deal. "It felt right, and that had to do with a lot of things that were on my priority list: a place I thought my family would be happy; a place where I thought we would have an opportunity to win a world championship now. The defensive schemes are very similar, since they try to emulate what we did in Tampa. I felt when I visited that they had a great grasp for that."
After 11 seasons, Lynch was released by the Bucs last week. Though 32 and coming off offseason neck surgery, Lynch said playing with several newcomers, including cornerback Champ Bailey, defensive tackle Luther Elliss and defensive ends Marco Coleman and Raylee Johnson, makes his timing perfect.
"The main thing is they already played good defense here," Lynch said. "But to play with Champ and Luther and all these new guys shows that they are making a commitment, and that's one of the things that I felt was important. It was nice to have a place with tradition and history of being world champions, but it was also very clear that this isn't an organization that's resting on its laurels. They're trying everything to get back there."
CROWDED HOUSE: It usually gets a little crowded in the offensive line meeting room this time of year, but this may be an all-time high.
With the re-signing of guard Cosey Coleman, the Bucs have added five offensive linemen through free agency and return all the starters and key backups from last season.
There are 16 linemen on the roster.
"Every offseason, there's going to be some change," center John Wade said. "Obviously, at the offensive line position, we've got a lot of new guys in. It's going to be good, putting in the competition, and we're just going to have to work hard, stay together. We could use the meeting times, the on-the-field times, to get to know each other. ... I've met everybody and got all the names right. (There's) no name tags needed."
Barring injuries or unexpected moves, the competition for roster spots, much less playing time, will be intense in the coming months.
"For me, (this is the time) to try to make it more consistent and to help the new guys with any questions," Wade said. "It's going to be good for us to have the competition out there. We have a good group of guys. ... It's exciting to get back out here, especially as we had a disappointing season."
UPON FURTHER REVIEW: Monday, Warren Sapp signed a seven-year, $36.6-million contract with the Raiders that came with a $7-million signing bonus. The figure seemed large considering the defensive tackle is 31.
Now there comes word that the signing bonus isn't $7-million after all. According to the Oakland Tribune, Sapp's signing bonus is actually $4.5-million, just slightly larger than the offer he received from the Bengals. Sapp might have a roster bonus of $2.5-million in his contract, but agent Drew Rosenhaus would not discuss the terms.
STARTING OVER: The procession of old and new players continued at One Buc Place Tuesday, the second day of the offseason conditioning program. But though the absence of the likes of Sapp and Lynch will be noticeable for some time, linebacker Shelton Quarles said the players have to move on.
"It's going to be different," he said. "But, hopefully the guys that are taking and playing those positions will step up. I'm confident the coaches did the right thing as far as knowing who they want to bring in and replace those guys.
"In the age we're in right now, there's always going to be people changing teams and stuff like that. It's a shame that those guys had to leave, but you've got to expect that sooner or later. One day, sooner or later, I'm not going to be here. Sooner or later, (Derrick) Brooks won't be here. It'll come a point when that stuff happens and it just happen to hit us with two of our major guys in one year."
