The arrest of cornerback Eric Wright could lead the Buccaneers to reverse course on a big change to their secondary.
Tampa has been playing veteran Ronder Barber at safety this spring with Wright and Aqib Talib taking the starting cornerback jobs. The rationale for the decision was to keep Barber on the field while accepting that he has slowed down a bit when it comes to locking down receivers on the outside. It’s a sound rationale, albeit one Ira Kaufman of the Tampa Tribune reports could change if Wright is suspended.
Cornerback depth isn’t a strength in Tampa where E.J. Biggers, Myron Lewis and Anthony Gaitor make up the depth chart behind Wright and Talib. The Bucs face Cam Newton, Eli Manning and Tony Romo in the first three weeks of the season, which means that they will need to be sharp in the defensive backfield to have a chance at getting an early victory. Barber might not be as good as he once was, but he’s still got an edge on the other options which leads Kaufman to believe everything old could be new again in Tampa.
No decision has been made about a suspension for Wright at this point, but the Bucs are probably already considering contingency plans while they figure out their internal reaction to Wright’s arrest.