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          Ravens, Browns remain front-runners and best fits for Gerald McCoy

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          Golic: Bucs choosing not to honor McCoy contract (1:32)

          Mike Golic considers the Bucs' release of DT Gerald McCoy a strictly business move. (1:32)

          • Jenna Laine, ESPN Staff WriterMay 29, 2019, 12:15 PM
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              Jenna Laine covers the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for ESPN. She started covering the Bucs for ESPN in 2016, but she has covered the team since 2009. Follow Jenna on Twitter: @JennaLaineESPN.
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          TAMPA, Fla. -- In the nine days since the Tampa Bay Buccaneers parted ways with Gerald McCoy, the 31-year-old defensive tackle has fielded interest from several teams. Here's a look at a few of those teams and where things are currently with McCoy:

          Baltimore Ravens

          McCoy visited the Ravens on Tuesday and his visit will continue into Wednesday, when they could attempt to sign him. While the Ravens are primarily a 3-4 defense, a move here would reunite him with former Bucs defensive line coach Joe Cullen, whom McCoy worked with from 2014-15.

          McCoy wants to play for a contender and the Ravens, who lost to the Los Angeles Chargers 23-17 in the wild-card round in January, certainly fit the bill. They have an exciting young quarterback, Lamar Jackson, leading the charge.

          What might hurt the Ravens' chances is that they only have $13.8 million in salary-cap space, according to ESPN's Roster Management System; the Browns have $33.8 million in cap space. Sources close to McCoy say that he would be willing to take less to play for a contender.

          Cleveland Browns

          McCoy visited the Browns last week before returning to Florida to celebrate the Memorial Day holiday with his family and has remained in touch with the Browns. Sources tell ESPN that the Browns are still very hopeful that he'll sign. The biggest thing is that he wants to go to a contender. Does Cleveland qualify?

          Based on all the moves the Browns made this offseason, they certainly have the potential to be one in 2019. But right now, it's only potential. Freddie Kitchens is a first-time head coach. The positives -- McCoy wants to be wanted and general manager John Dorsey has conveyed how much they'd love to have him. McCoy also is a fan of quarterback Baker Mayfield. And he has never had the luxury of playing next to guys like Myles Garrett and Olivier Vernon.

          Indianapolis Colts

          While the Colts have expressed interest in McCoy, no visit has been set up. A source said that currently, the Ravens and the Browns are the front-runners. The Colts do have $58 million in cap space, the most in the league, which is why they've been pegged as a possible destination for McCoy. They also play a 4-3 defense and rely on interior defenders getting into the backfield, which is a perfect fit for McCoy.

          McCoy still has one of the quickest get-offs in the league, and the Colts showed that with a healthy Andrew Luck last season, they're a contender. One league source was skeptical of how real the Colts' level of interest actually is, however, and believes it might be driven by folks outside their building.

          Other teams

          A source said the New England Patriots showed some degree of interest in McCoy when the Bucs were attempting to trade him, although they currently have less than $5 million in cap space, which makes that move a difficult one. The Atlanta Falcons reached out, too, according to a source, but they currently have $3.39 million in cap space -- second lowest in the league. They will, however, receive $8.6 million in post-June 1 cuts of Ryan Schraeder and Brandon Fusco, but they also are looking at new deals for Grady Jarrett and Julio Jones.