Vita Vea has requested a trade from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after talks on a contract extension stalled, NFL Network's Mike Garafolo and Ian Rapoport reported Monday.
Vea is entering the final year of the four-year, $71 million contract he signed in 2022. He's set to earn a $17 million base salary in 2026, and none of it is guaranteed, though his cap hit for the season is listed at roughly $22.2 million. The dispute had already surfaced before minicamp, when Vea skipped Tampa Bay's voluntary spring workout program while seeking a new deal. He then became a "hold-in" at mandatory minicamp in June — present at practice but not participating — to keep pressing the issue. Head coach Todd Bowles dismissed concerns at the time, calling the situation "part of the business."
Vea, 31, has been with Tampa Bay for all eight seasons of his career since the Buccaneers drafted him 12th overall out of Washington in 2018, helping anchor a Buccaneers defense that has reached the playoffs each of the past several seasons. He's a two-time Pro Bowler, selected in 2021 and 2024, and closed the 2025 season with 34 tackles, 4.5 sacks and 13 quarterback hits across all 17 games. The interior-defensive-line market has moved since Vea's deal was signed — Tennessee's Jeffery Simmons became the position's highest-paid player this June at $35.2 million a year, nearly double Vea's average annual value.
Vea returned from a broken ankle suffered in Week 5 of the 2020 season to play in the Buccaneers' 31-9 win over the Chiefs in Super Bowl LV, a game in which Tampa Bay's defense held Kansas City without an offensive touchdown against Patrick Mahomes.
Vea reportedly prefers a trade to a California team or the Las Vegas Raiders, a preference tied to his Northern California roots. ESPN's landing-spot analysis has floated the Raiders, Patriots, Chargers, Panthers and 49ers as potential fits, while NFL.com's survey of the trade market named the Raiders, Chargers, 49ers, Giants, Bills, Bears and Packers as possible destinations. His agent has not confirmed a specific list of preferred destinations, and it remains unclear whether the Buccaneers will grant the request or attempt to reopen extension talks before the start of training camp. Other teams settled their deals instead: Chicago gave right tackle Darnell Wright a four-year, $116 million extension in August, with a record $93 million guaranteed for an offensive lineman.
Source: ESPN
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