Bucs make strong plays to keep Penn, Ruud and Cadillac

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have done just about everything possible to keep rival clubs from stealing linebacker Barrett Ruud, left tackle Donald Penn and running back Cadillac Williams during free agency.

With the deadline for tendering contracts to restricted free agents less than a week away, the Bucs placed the highest-possible tenders on Ruud and Penn and the second-highest on Williams.

The moves mean any team signing Penn or Ruud would have to give the Bucs first- and third-round draft picks as compensation, while a team signing Williams would have to give Tampa Bay a first-round pick.

The tenders call for Ruud and Penn to earn $3.168 million in 2010. Williams' salary would increase from $2.09 million to approximately $2.22 million.

The Bucs placed an original-draft-position tender on right tackle Jeremy Trueblood, meaning a team signing him would have to compensate the Bucs with a second-round draft pick. Trueblood's tender calls for him to earn $1.759 million.

Penn, a three-year starter, also received the highest tender a year ago. While he understands it's part of the business of football, he is disappointed by the outcome.

"I guess it means that I'm good enough to be here for a year but not good enough to get a long-term contract,'' Penn said. "I feel blessed that they see me as one of the best in the league, but that still hasn't (translated) into a long-term contract, and that's tough."

Penn entered the league as an undrafted free agent in 2006, but has played solidly in protecting the blind sides of Tampa Bay's right-handed quarterbacks, including 2009 first-round pick Josh Freeman.

"The thing that hurts is we haven't even talked contract in almost a year now," Penn said. "The last time we talked before today was last year just before the start of the season, when contract talks broke off.''

Williams, who returned from two patellar-tendon knee injuries to lead the Bucs with 823 rushing yards in 2009, was offered a contract worth 110-percent of his 2009 salary, an increase from $2.09 million to approximately $2.22 million. In addition to the compensation requirement, the tender carries a stipulation calling for all award bonuses to be carried forward from the original contract.

"Carnell has to decide what he wants to do, obviously, but once he accepts the 110-perncet offer, it's a deal,'' Bucs General Manager Mark Dominik said Friday. "Once he does that, he's under contract.''

Wide receiver Brian Clark and linebacker Matt McCoy will not be tendered contracts, Dominik said.

The Bucs still must decide whether to make tender offers to other potential restricted free agents: receivers Maurice Stovall and Mark Bradley, fullback Byron Storer and linebacker Rod Wilson. The Bucs have meetings planned with the agents for those players to inform them of their plans.

In another move, the Bucs have decided to keep quarterback Byron Leftwich, at least for now, and could carry as many as four quarterbacks into their offseason program.

"I don't mind that,'' Dominik said of having four quarterbacks. "We'll see how it plays out. We'll see how he likes his position here, and I want to see what (quarterbacks coach) Alex Van Pelt's decision eventually is."

In addition to Leftwich, whose $3.5 million roster bonus did not kick in because he didn't play in enough games, the Bucs have Josh Freeman, Josh Johnson and Rudy Carpenter at quarterback.

Keep him or cut him: Be the Bucs' GM

Who would you bring back for the Bucs next season and who would you let go?

Thursday, Feb. 25: Quarterbacks

Friday, Feb. 26: Defensive line

Saturday, Feb. 27: Offensive line

Sunday, Feb. 28: Linebackers

Monday, March 1: Running backs

Tuesday, March 2: Defensive backs

Wednesday, March 3: Receivers/tight ends

Thursday, March 4: Summary and results