The San Francisco could lose one of their pivotal defenders this offseason in free agency.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are in need of some upgrades this offseason all up and down the roster, and could target Charvarius Ward.
With the potential release or trade of Jamel Dean, a veteran cornerback would fit nicely in the Bucs' room in 2025. While there have been several free agents linked to Tampa Bay this offseason, those have typically been linebackers and edge rushers.
But the Bucs will have a need to get deeper and better at corner.
Ward was with the Chiefs in 2019 when the team won the Super Bowl, and in 2020 when Kansas City lost to the Buccaneers and Tom Brady. But Ward has spent the past three seasons on the West Coast in Santa Clara.
Pro Football Focus thinks Ward would be a good fit with the Bucs and coach and defensive coordinator Todd Bowles' system.
"Ward played as well as any other cornerback in the NFL in his first two seasons with the San Francisco 49ers, as he earned an 89.1 PFF overall grade over the 2022 and 2023 seasons, which ranked behind only Sauce Gardner. In addition, his 2,163 snaps over this period also ranked fourth in the NFL. While Ward could not replicate this form and durability in 2024, that is largely – if not fully – due to an off-field tragedy. There is no reason to think that Ward, who will still be only 29 years old at the start of the season, cannot get back to his old form in the next couple seasons and become once again one of the best cornerbacks in the league.
Related: 49ers Could Keep RFA Jordan Mason as Insurance Policy
"The cornerback position has been a need for the Buccaneers even without the expected cut of Jamel Dean, and Ward's style works well with Todd Bowles's aggressive defense."
BookmarkAll49ersfor news, commentary & opinion all season.
FollowTimm Hamm on Xfor all the college football & NFL news, updates & analysis throughout the season.
Related: Insider Predicts 'Ruthless' Offseason for 49ers
Copyright 2025 The Arena Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved
This story was originally published March 9, 2025 at 4:09 PM.