A decision still needs to be made on the part of Ronde Barber, but the Buccaneers made their position very clear to Barber when they met this week.

“They want me to play, but they have left it up to me like they have pretty much every year,” Barber said at the DeBartolo Family Foundation All-Star Celebrity Gala. “I’ve got time, so I’m going to take my time.”

Barber will be 38 to start next season,  but was a pro bowl alternate last season.

Ronde’s brother, Tiki, told “The Booger and Rich Show” earlier last week that he believes Ronde wants to play. Click here to listen to the interview here.

“You know, he does (want to play),” Tiki Barber said.  “And there’s been some rhetoric around his motivation. ‘He’s too beat up; he can’t do it anymore.’ But I’ve talked to him multiple times over the last month and a half and it’s been the same. He’s told me this is the best he’s felt after a season in many years.”

While we do not know the capacity that the Buccaneers would like Ronde Barber to return at, but Bucs general Manager Mark Dominik did release a statement Saturday morning:

“Coach Schiano and I met with Ronde this past week and expressed our desire for him to return to play another season with the Buccaneers. He asked us for some time to make his decision and we certainly respect that.”

Ronde Barber will become an unrestricted free agent on Tuesday as the new NFL year begins.

For updates on the Buccaneers off-season moves in free agency and the NFL Draft, be sure to follow Justin Pawlowski and 98.7 The Fan on twitter.

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