In three-plus years under general manager Jason Licht, the Bucs' front office has taken pride in its ability to find hidden gems missed by the rest of the NFL, in undrafted players like Cameron Brate and Adam Humphries and astute waiver-wire claims like Jacquies Smith.
And while Licht makes it clear that it's wrong to credit just one person with a team landing a certain player, one of his best examples for such a move panning out is Patriots outside linebacker Rob Ninkovich, who retired this weekend at 33.
This week in 2009, Ninkovich had been cut as a long-snapper by the Saints at the start of training camp, having totaled six tackles in three seasons as a pass-rusher with New Orleans and Miami.