As you may have heard already, Tanard Jackson was released by the Buccaneers earlier today after supposedly failing a physical. After reading a little about him, I started to wonder if he could possibly be a nice replacement for Sherrod Martin.

Now, I know we have already signed two other safeties this offseason, but both seem to be competition for Martin, not any clear starters. Tanard would be our starter. He is a hard hitting safety that is solid in coverage and would definitely be an upgrade over Sherrod.

The only knocks against Jackson is that he actually did fail a physical, which means he is still not completely recovered from a shoulder injury from last year, or that he lacks motivation to rehab and stay in shape. Also, he has had some off the field issues. He was suspended for violating the league's substance-abuse policy for the majority of the 2010 season, but when he returned in 2011, he played well as long as he could stay healthy.

Jackson was considered Tampa's best safety, and from what I've see, he was a fan favorite. With the Steve Smith extension, it looks at though we've freed up a few million in cap space, and Tanard was making only $2 million a season with bonuses for each game he stayed 53-man roster in Tampa

If signed, we could turn one of our weaknesses into a strength by having good starting safeties with excellent depth from other signings we have made this offseason. If we could sign him to a cheap contract with little guaranteed, that included some incentives for staying healthy and on the 53-man roster, do you think he is worth the risk?