GumboBC

BARBER NEXT BUC TO TAKE CUT?

Word around the league is that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have asked cornerback Ronde Barber to take a pay cut.

The request, we're told, isn't going over well with Barber, a long-time cog in the team's Cover 2 scheme.

But new G.M. Bruce Allen has made it known through the handling of mainstays Warren Sapp and John Lynch that there are no sacred cows in Tampa as he and coach Jon Gruden try to re-tool a roster built by former G.M. Rich McKay.

The money that Barber is asked to cough up could be used to help address the demands of receiver Keenan McCardell, who is boycotting voluntary workouts due to displeasure over his contract.

We haven't heard whether the Bucs will bounce Barber if he refuses to reduce his pay, and our guess is that there would be a high demand for the 29-year-old's services in other NFL cities. The most intriguing possibility, of course, would be the Giants, where Ronde's identical twin brother, Tiki, is the starting tailback.

http://www.profootballtalk.com/rumormill.htm