Tampa Bay Buccaneers Head Coach Greg Schiano said on Wednesday that his players had put together two strong days of mini-camp practice, and that was apparently especially true of veteran WR Derek Hagan.
Those two practices proved to be the entirety of the mini-camp, as Schiano gave his players a break on Thursday and took them to a private screening of the upcoming Brad Pitt blockbuster World War Z. Thus, Wednesday proved to be the end of the Buccaneers' offseason work, but it was just the beginning for Hagan.
On Thursday, General Manager Mark Dominik revealed during a live broadcast on WFLA-TV News Channel 8 that the Buccaneers had signed Hagan, who played in 14 games with two starts for the Raiders last season. Hagan had been participating in the Bucs' mini-camp on a tryout basis, along with four other players.
To make room for Hagan on the 90-man offseason roster – essentially, the roster that will head into training camp in late July, though there could be a few more tweaks in the interim – the Buccaneers released rookie WR Jheranie Boyd. Boyd himself had earned a spot on the roster via a tryout, having taken part in the Bucs' rookie mini-camp in that manner earlier in the offseason.
The 6-2, 210-pound Hagan has seven NFL seasons under his belt already, having played for the Dolphins, Giants, Raiders and Bills. His career totals include 129 catches for 1,480 yards and six touchdowns. Last season, he signed with Oakland for a second time in early September and went on to catch 20 passes for 259 yards.
Originally a third-round draft pick by Miami in 2006, Hagan spent two seasons and part of a third with the Dolphins, peaking at 29 receptions for 373 yards and two scores in 2007. He landed with the Giants next, finishing out the 2008 season in New York and then staying for all of 2009 and part of 2010. He split 2011 between Oakland and Buffalo before returning to the Raiders last season.
Hagan holds most of the all-time receiving records at Arizona State, his alma mater, where he posted three 1,000-yard receiving seasons and finished as a first-team All-Pac 10 choice in 2005. He remains second in conference history with 258 catches and 3,959 yards.
