Clemson football: Bradley Pinion released by Tampa, becomes free agent

Bradley Pinion was released by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Wednesday.

Former Clemson football punter Bradley Pinion was released by the Tampa Bay Bucs on Wednesday in an effort to save $2 million in cap space.

Pinion himself acknowledged the move in so many words, in a tweet of his own.

Pinion played at Clemson from 2012-2014 and famously took a chance on himself by deciding to enter the draft with a season of eligibility left at Clemson, a move almost unheard of for a punter at the time.

While Pinion was mocked for the move, it paid off handsomely as he was selected in the fifth round, number 165 overall by the San Francisco 49ers.

In his career to date, Pinion has a 43.7 yard average on 502 punts and he has earned more than $10,000,000 between his time in San Francisco and Tampa Bay.

Bucs save about $2,000,000 in salary cap space by releasing Bradley Pinion

Pinion struggled last season, after being one of the better punters and kickoff specialists in the league.

"Pinion joined the Buccaneers in 2019 and was one of the better punters and kickoff specialists in the league. He had a slight downtick in 2020 but injuries caused his 2021 to be less than stellar, dropping yards per punt average down by more than three. His touchback percentage also dropped from 90.7% down to a disappointing 79.8%."

Given those factors, the team has decided to go with a less expensive option for the 2022 season.

"Bucs gain about $2 million in cap space by cutting Bradley Pinion. They shed all of his $2.9 million salary with no dead money, but he’s replaced in top 51 by a player with a $895k cap number. They now have about $12 million in cap space for 2022."

Per his tweet Pinion plans to continue to punt for another NFL team and is not planning to retire at this point.

"I look forward to where God puts us this up coming season! Trust me, I ain’t no where near done and the best is still yet to come!"

In his three seasons at Clemson, Pinion punted 140 times for a 41.1 average, including a 42.6 yard per punt average as a junior, and was three for three on extra points after coming to the Tigers from Northwest Cabarrus High School in Concord, North Carolina.