Even after eight years of watching Vita Vea getting in the way of his offense, Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay is not sold on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ defensive tackle’s upside enough to bring him to L.A.
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When Kay Adams sat down with McVay at Loyola Marymount University this week, she broke the news of Vea’s trade request to the coach and asked him if he’d be interested in signing him. McVay first gave Vea his flowers, but then shut down any potential trade talk.
“He’s a stud,” McVay said on the Up and Adams Show. “I think that he is a great player that’s always been a problem to gameplan against, but I think we feel good about our group right now.”
Adams then highlighted Vea’s ability to run the ball. McVay acknowledged that, but closed the book on him again, referencing Kyren Williams and Blake Corum from his squad.
“We’ve got a couple of backs that we feel good about as well,” McVay said.
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CHARLOTTE, NC – NOVEMBER 30: Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay looks at the score board as time is running out in the fourth quarter during an NFL, American Football Herren, USA football game between the Los Angeles Rams and the Carolina Panthers on November 30, 2025 at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, N.C. Photo by John Byrum/Icon Sportswire NFL: NOV 30 Rams at Panthers EDITORIAL USE ONLY Icon25113033
Vita Vea is entering the final year of the $71M deal he signed with the Bucs in 2022. This season, he’s set to make $17M. But he doesn’t have any guarantees on that amount. With contract negotiations not going anywhere, and a market projection of 2-years, $55.5M (per Spotrac), Vea held in at the mandatory minicamp in the hopes of a new, bigger deal. But with no movement from the Bucs, a trade request was his only way out.
The Rams are already on the lookout for their former DT Aaron Donald to come out of retirement. If that doesn’t happen, Vea could’ve been another option to fall back on. Despite McVay’s rejection, Vea’s market remains active. He’s a Super Bowl champ (LV) and a 2x Pro Bowler who has logged 35.0 sacks, 154 solo tackles, 48 tackles for loss, and 79 QB hits for Tampa Bay across eight seasons. He’d be a great depth addition to any team still in the process of figuring out their defense.
To that effect, The Athletic’s Ted Nguyen recently noted that Vea “wants to go to a California team or the Raiders.” Nguyen also highlighted that Vea could hang up his cleats after the 2026 season if nothing else works.
For now, the Las Vegas Raiders, the Chicago Bears, and the San Francisco 49ers have been floated as potential landing spots, given these teams offer Vea the contract he’s looking for. Whether Vita Vea ends up playing out this season with the Bucs or ends up elsewhere, one thing is certain: the Rams are not going to come calling.