The Tampa Bay Buccaneers had a heartbreaking loss to the New York Giants on Sunday, but the game featured another ridiculous performance from outside linebacker Shaquil Barrett. The edge rusher sacked Giants quarterback Daniel Jones four times and forced two fumbles.
https://twitter.com/ToddRomeroTV/status/1175886091007610880
This comes after Barrett had three sacks vs Cam Newton and the Carolina Panthers in Week 2, and was named NFC Defensive Player of the Week. The Colorado State product is quite likely to win this award again for his Week 3 performance.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mJqasu9iEVg
Barrett now has EIGHT sacks through three games. Yes, we’re only in Week 3, and Barrett already has eight sacks.
The otherworldly pass-rushing statistics are also already reaching incentives in Barrett’s contract with the Bucs. Barrett signed a one-year, $4 million deal with Tampa Bay in the offseason. Well, the contract includes a $250,000 incentive for reaching eight sacks in the season, which Barrett did on Sunday.
And if Barrett gets two more sacks to reach 10 on the season, he’ll get another $250,000.
While nobody could’ve seen this kind of production coming from Barrett, it’s not a surprise that he’s doing very well as a pass rusher. The 26-year-old always showed flashes while with the Denver Broncos since entering the league in 2014 (though he didn’t play in the 2014 season), but constantly found himself behind Von Miller and company — Bradley Chubb in 2018 as well — on the Denver depth chart.
And, even though Barrett would only be a situational pass rusher again behind Miller and Chubb on the depth chart, the Broncos likely wish they still had him.
Barrett obviously won’t keep playing at this level, but with the incredible numbers he’s already put together, he may not have to do too much more to stay in the Defensive Player of the Year mix all season.
About Matt Clapp
Matt is an editor/writer at The Comeback and Awful Announcing.
He can be reached by email at mclapp@thecomeback.com.