Less than 24 hours after being , veteran safety T.J. Ward is expected to sign with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, according to multiple reports.
NFL Network the impending deal.
His contract, , will be for one year and up to $5 million. Ward was due $4.5 million in salary from Denver in 2017.
Ward arrived in Denver in 2014 as the first piece of John Elway’s defensive overhaul and became a leader on the secondary and team as a whole. In his three seasons with the Broncos, Ward earned two of his three Pro Bowl selections and totaled 225 tackles, five sacks, three interceptions, 19 pass-breakups, five forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries.
Ward had one more year left on his contract and his agent had discussions with the Broncos, but the team ultimately decided to move on and elevate second-year safety Justin Simmons to the starting role. The Broncos never asked Ward to consider a pay cut to stay.
“I think it’s a combination of everything. Any time you have a guy like T.J. that was such a big part of the championship year that we had and the last three years that he’s been here — he’s led that defense and plays with an attitude and a chip on his shoulder,” Elway said. “We give him a lot of credit for what we’ve played defensively the last few years, but it always comes down to football decisions. With the young guys, they were playing well and it really wasn’t anything to do with T.J. It was just the fact that the young guys played well and that was the best football move for us.”
