Buccaneers Signing Veteran S T.J. Ward To One-Year Deal Worth Up To $5M

According to Adam Schefter, the Buccaneers are signing veteran S T.J. Ward to a one-year, $5 million contract following his release from the Broncos.

• Mike Garafolo reports that Ward’s contract with the Bucs is worth $4 million and can be worth $5 million with incentives.
• James Palmer was first to report that Ward was signing with the Buccaneers.

Last night, Jeremy Fowler reported that three teams are making a “serious push” to sign Ward and a decision was expected to come soon, and it appears as though the Buccaneers were aggressive enough to get a deal done right away.

Ward, 30, is a former second-round pick of the Browns back in 2010. He played out his rookie contract with the Browns before signing a four-year, $22.5 million contract that included $13.5 million guaranteed with the Broncos in 2014.

Ward was entering the final year of his contract and set to make a base salary of $4.5 million for the 2017 season when the Broncos cut him loose Saturday.

In 2016, Ward appeared in 14 games for the Broncos and recorded 87 tackles, one sack, an interception, two forced fumbles and eight pass defenses. Pro Football Focus had him rated as the No. 50 safety out of 90 qualifying players.