Here's why the best thing that happened to Shaquil Barrett was leaving Denver

The topic that launched a thousand sports-radio, podcast and message-board discussions doesn’t cross Shaquil Barrett’s mind.

That subject, of course, is the great hypothetical of the Broncos’ pass rush and team-building process of the last two-and-a-half years: What if the Broncos had not drafted edge rusher Bradley Chubb to become an immediate starter and instead had gone in a different direction?

That would have made Barrett a starter in 2018.

Instead, he backed up Chubb and Von Miller. He was ready in relief, posting three sacks, seven quarterback hits and six tackles for loss. And he was ready to move on to an opportunity that wasn’t coming in Denver.

“I most definitely don’t think about that,” he said on a Zoom conference call with Tampa Bay area media Thursday. “Because honestly, that’s the only reason why they had me, because if one of them did get hurt, they know they’ve got a secure, comfortable backup that can come in and make some plays and be somewhat of a starting-caliber player.”

Barrett was the most valuable reserve the Broncos had. But whether it was Chubb or Shane Ray, there was always another young player who pushed him down the depth chart a notch.

“It wasn’t that I didn’t want to stay in Denver,” he said. “I feel like my last two years there, I felt as though that there was a zero percent chance to start. They weren’t even giving me the opportunity to compete to start. …

“I just felt it was time. I learned as much as I could there. I did as much as I could there. There was no more ‘on the rise’ there. I was stuck at the position I was at.”

In 15 starts over five seasons with the Broncos, Barrett had 50 total tackles — including 11 for losses — 17 quarterback hits, 6.5 sacks, four passes defensed and two forced fumbles. He was stout at the point of attack against the run and possessed enough pass-rush punch to carve out a niche in the NFL.

“It worked initially,” Barrett said of his time with the Broncos, “but as I did become an older player, I did want to see if I could be a full-time starter in the league, and it just wasn’t an option there or a possible role that I could have.”

In Denver, Barrett showed that he is a starting-quality player who deserved more playing time. But those years didn’t portend the 19.5-sack explosion he had in 2019, when he led the NFL and set a Buccaneers franchise record for sacks in a single season.

Barrett, a Colorado State product, still makes his offseason home in Highlands Ranch. He’ll always have love for the Broncos and the chance they gave him.

“I look back like all of my time there was a blessing,” he said. “I wouldn’t be the player I am now without going there and being on the practice squad. The path that I took was probably the best path for me and my career. So I think it was all a great experience, a great learning experience. I’m just really appreciative that they decided to bring me in and kept me around after my first year on the practice squad.”

Barrett’s slow build resulted in his breakthrough season, which has him playing this year on the franchise tender of $15.8 million. Now he works primarily as the Bucs’ left outside linebacker. That will put him over Broncos right tackle Elijah Wilkinson, who Pro Football Focus credited with four pressures and one sack allowed last Sunday in Pittsburgh.

“I honestly do prefer the left side better, the side that I’m on now, because I think my right arm is my strong arm, so it helps me with my power moves a little bit better and [Jason Pierre-Paul] prefers the side that he’s on, so it works out perfectly,” Barrett said, “But I have no preference in a game, besides that it’s my strong arm.”

Kind of like his whole career. Sure, Barrett has a preference — the side of the field on which he works, the t But he rolls with what the situation yields and maximizes it.

“I mean, I just want to show them that they had the chance to have me and [they] let me go,” Barrett said. “But, I’m happy with my situation down here. I love it. Literally it’s the best plan that could have ever happened, and it worked out.”