When Aqib Talib was charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon in March, it was widely expected that the Bucs would wash their hands of him as soon as the league year started. But that no longer appears to be the case.
Several more recent reports have suggested that the Bucs haven’t made any decision about cutting Talib, and the most recent report, from Jason La Canfora of NFL Network, says Talib is prepared to attend training camp whenever the lockout ends and will likely remain with the Bucs throughout the 2011 season.
Talib has previously run afoul of the league’s personal conduct policy, and it seems likely that NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell would suspend him for the latest incident, in which he is accused of shooting a gun at his sister’s ex-boyfriend. But it’s not clear whether the new CBA will change Goodell’s power to suspend players, and it’s also not clear to what extent acts committed during the lockout will be subject to the personal conduct policy.
So it’s unclear what Talib’s status with the league office will be. But when training camps open, he’s expected to be there as part of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.