Most of the teams interested in receiver DeSean Jackson (and there are more than seven) won’t discuss DeSean on the record.
The Buccaneers, in a refreshing twist, have opted to talk openly about their potential interest in adding another Jackson to their receiving corps.
“I’ve had a chance to be on the other side of the field and have watched him make a lot of great plays,” coach Lovie Smith said Friday, via Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times. “He’s a great football player. Of course, we look at everyone we think can help us win.”
G.M. Jason Licht offered a more cautious assessment.
“He’d have to be the right fit on and off the field,” Licht told Stroud. “I don’t want to dismiss him right away but we’re looking at a bunch of other players, too.”
It doesn’t sound like the Bucs will be in the hunt for Jackson. Still, someone who views Jackson as the missing piece of the puzzle will embrace the opportunity to bring him to town.
Based on everything we’ve heard so far, watch the 49ers. A year after the Seahawks acquired a gamebreaker in Percy Harvin, the 49ers could get one of their own.
And if Jackson plays like he did last year, he could be the difference between first place and second place in the division, which for the NFC West now also means the difference between first place and second place in the conference -- and likely in the league.