Outside Forces Could Force Bucs Moves
June 10th, 2023
Bucs GM Jason Licht.
Could the Bucs be on the cusp of a long stretch of both quarterback purgatory and NFL irrelevance? One NFL stenographer believes that’s not a crazy thought.
Remember not so long ago when the NFC South was quarterback central — though not in Tampa Bay? The division had quarterbacks who not only could sling it, but were MVPs and had led their teams to Super Bowls.
Except the Bucs.
Drew Brees, Cam Newton and Matty Ice were the elite signal-callers of the division. Meanwhile, the Bucs trotted out tripe like Byron Leftwich and Stewart McClown. (To be fair, Josh Freeman did give Bucs fans hope for one year.)
While the Dixie Chicks, slimy Saints and Stinking Panthers were winning divisions and playoff games with stud quarterbacks, the Bucs had garbage and leftovers for quarterbacks — and lost a lot, including shatting themselves way too often at home.
But hey, it was giddy times for the don’t-draft-a-quarterback-in-the-first-round crowd. Life was good (for them).
Dallas Robinson of Pro Football Network thinks those days could be nearing.
Robinson typed that if Desmond Ridder and Bryce Young come of age this fall, that may give Bucs AC/DC-loving general manager Jason Licht no choice but to go get a franchise quarterback next spring in order to keep up.
While the Bucs could cause some self-inflicted harm next season, a worst-case scenario might also include Young and Ridder immediately firing as Carolina and Atlanta’s starting quarterbacks. If those two clubs have franchise signal-callers in hand, Tampa Bay would have difficulty fighting back toward relevancy in the NFC South.
Of course, lost in all of this is if Baker Mayfield has a strong year, and he showed signs last year playing for a competent offensive coach, then the Bucs have their quarterback for the next few years.
Yeah, Joe gets what Robinson is writing. But it all weighs on Mayfield. If he stinks this fall, the Bucs likely will be drafting a quarterback in April.
June 10th, 2023 at 2:58 pm
Baker is not the guy. A stop gap at best. We’ll be drafting in the top ten. Not sure if thats high enough to get the next guy. Plenty of teams will be tanking this season
June 10th, 2023 at 3:03 pm
Desmond Ridder…. franchise QB? I guess we’ll see, but, yeah. GO BUCS!!
June 10th, 2023 at 3:03 pm
these national pundits forget how hard it is for ROOKIES to be relevant.. See Baker.
June 10th, 2023 at 3:05 pm
Hog wash, we don’t need a franchise QB. Build an all-star defense and a rock-solid offensive line, above average receivers and decent running backs and a average QB will flourish, aka Brad Johnson. Won’t have to overpay for the likes of Mahomie, feel me Watson and/or Lamar Jackson.
June 10th, 2023 at 3:11 pm
No worries, we have Super HC/DC Bowles and Mayfield the GOPS (Greatest of the pre-season). They will lead us to The Super Bowl. This is the first announcement of many to follow before they have to put the show on the field. Soon it will be a Super Bowl Run.
June 10th, 2023 at 3:19 pm
Right on Henry
June 10th, 2023 at 3:20 pm
Next draft …SS396!
June 10th, 2023 at 3:26 pm
I’m not buying the negativity. Our defense should be very good — younger and faster. If we can get the running game going and avoid costly interceptions, we should be good on offense, with 2 1000 yard receiver and hopefully a 1000 yard back. Baker should be more than okay in this offense. I fully expect this team to compete for the NFCS.
June 10th, 2023 at 3:30 pm
Henry, that’s 80s football. It’s a different league. Without a top ten QB, you stand little chance of winning. Look at Brady in new England. He dragged teams to the Superbowl that had no business being there. Namely 2011 and 2019. Those teams don’t go to the big game without him.
June 10th, 2023 at 3:33 pm
I would take Mayfield or Trask over Ridder if I was looking to bet on a qb breaking out this year.
June 10th, 2023 at 3:39 pm
You slay me, JBF, with your various repeated slanders of Bucs fans who don’t share your frequently proven wrong platitudes about NFL football. Now you yak about “the don’t draft a quarterback in the first round crowd”. Really?
So I guess you are in the “do draft a quarterback in the first round crowd”?
Weren’t you the guy that beat the drum for Jamie’s Winston? The last first round – indeed first overall pick – quarterback of the Bucs? Wow, that sure worked out great, didn’t it? And then the previous quarterback drafted in the first round – wasn’t that Josh Freeman, that other stupendous QB? Or how about the last first rounder before those two debacles – wasn’t that Trent Dilfer? Another great passer he was. And Vinnie Testaverde, whom the Bucs let go.
Now lemme think a moment …. the Bucs have only played in and won two Super Bowles in their history, and of course the Bucs drafted both of those Super Bowl quarterbacks in the first round, amiright? No???
Actually, neither of those two quarterbacks was drafted by their former teams anywhere remotely near the first round. … I believe it was the 6th round (Brady) and the 9th round (Johnson).
Oh, another thing, you wrote about those bad old days when the NFC South was QB rich but the Bucs weren’t … the only division quarterback from that era who will go in the Hall of Fame – Drew Brees – was drafted in the 2nd round and was let go by the team that drafted him.
The crowd I belong to is the “it’s not where you draft that matters … it only matters how well you draft crowd.”
June 10th, 2023 at 3:50 pm
Trask will be the QB-Mayfield is way over hyped.
June 10th, 2023 at 3:56 pm
Look back at the winning Super Bowl QBs this century and you see familar names like Brady (7), Mahomes (2), Peyton Manning (2), Eli Manning (2), Roethlisberger (2), plus some 1-time winners with still familiar names such as Brees, Rodgers, Stafford, Wilson. Less familiar to many are some others who also won it once this century: Trent Dilfer, Brad Johnson, Joe Flacco, Nick Foles.
Seems like the one thing common to those last 4 was that they played on teams with very good defenses the year they won it (2000 Ravens: #1 defense; 2002 Bucs: #1 defense; 2012 Ravens: #12 defense; 2017 Eagles: #4 defense.
So Henry I support your contention (don’t need a franchise QB), but the odds seem to somewhat favor teams with QBs named Brady, Mahomes, Manning & Roethlisberger. Relatively few scrambling QBs among those winning WQBs, but times have changed. Kinda gets me wondering if any of these young mobile QBs will see the longevity & same results as their predecessors.
June 10th, 2023 at 4:33 pm
shankasorous Says:
June 10th, 2023 at 4:08 pm
Joe’s hyping of Baker Mayfield reminds me of Joe’s hyping of Johnny Manzeil and Jameis Winston. Baker Mayfield will be Joe’s strike three.
^^^^^^^^
There seemed to be a commenter with all of the same exact “points” you make, only under a different name. Huh.
June 10th, 2023 at 4:33 pm
I would take Baker Mayfield. Our former #1 overall draft pick QB over two rookies any day of the week.
Carr and the Saints are going to be ready day 1.
June 10th, 2023 at 4:34 pm
Atlanta is going to run the ball again.
If we can handle their ground game, we can handle Atlanta
June 10th, 2023 at 4:36 pm
Do people not realize Baker had a 24.5 rating last season – and it was the same with both teams he was on?
If he has a 24.5 rating in 2023 this team might go winless.
His play has to DRAMATICALLY improve over last season for the Bucs to have a winning record.
I feel like the only sane thinker on this site at times. It’s delusional to think he’s going to jump up to a 60+ QBR and become the guy. His career best was 65.5 in 2020.
Other years
54.4
51.2
40.9
25.5
What’s hallmarked his career are two things – struggling with comp % and not throwing for a lot of yards. Those are two pretty important things a QB needs to excel at.
It’s foolhardy to think this guy is going to get you a top 10 offense, but this team’s leadership is going to force us through this impending car wreck we all know is coming (those of us who aren’t blind homers who get excited for anything.
So going from Tom Brady to Baker Mayfield is an insult of the highest order. What the heck did we do this coaching staff and team that they are maliciously are gaslighting us into last year’s worst QB?
I’ve been a loyal fan for 30 years and quite frankly I deserve better.
June 10th, 2023 at 4:38 pm
As our new DT stated Young will have to face me twice a year, I will add in Ridder and Carr.
We get no credit for players we draft. Yet every other teams new players or second year players are just going to light it up this season. Just not our players. Right Joes?
June 10th, 2023 at 4:46 pm
Seriously…
Base case this is a long shot bet on a guy nobody else wanted and half the league needs QBs.
Lets not hand him the job in June F F S.
This is getting absolutely ridiculous.
June 10th, 2023 at 5:02 pm
Just Leave Trask Alone Says:
Good point about Baker’s QBR last year.
Some people like you apparently value QBR over passer rating.
QBR favors quarterbacks that run, and that will never be Trask or Mayfield and really would never expect either to have a 70 QBR in a season.
But both could get over the 90 mark in passer rating which will mean good seasons. By the way, Baker’s passer rating with the Rams who he has no preseason with was over 86.
As much as Bucs fans want to complain about BL last year, the worst NFL head coach and offensive coordinator calling plays last year and the last few years has been Matt Rhule. No quarterback succeeded with that dope.
June 10th, 2023 at 5:20 pm
Joe’s already anointed Baker the starter. Our entire season is all about Baker. I’ve got nothing against the guy but based on what does he deserve the hype.
QBR
2018 51.2
2019 54.4
2020 65.5
2021 40.9
2022 24.5
This is why I’m looking to see what Trask can do. I’m not a Gator, far from it. But I watched him destroy a very good Auburn defense his senior year and make FL respectable. To me Baker had one good splash game with the Rams to show a glimmer of hope and was all we could afford. Let’s just hope that glimmer wasn’t a flash in the pan.
June 10th, 2023 at 5:37 pm
Let’s all hope Kyle makes it a moot point by completely outplaying choker mayfield in camp and the preseason
From what we are being fed here, we are going to run a bunch of 3 yard patterns, bootlegs, zone blocking run game- which plays right into Chokers skill set
Let’s hope the new OC recognizes a 6’5” passer with a strong arm that can open the field with Evans and Godwin
Let’s see Kyle before we worry about next year – EVERYONE knows what choker mayfield is ….good enough to get you beat
June 10th, 2023 at 5:58 pm
No matter Mayfield or Trask (or an emergency plug-in later), the threat posed by NFC South opposition is weak. Not a single top QB to be afraid of. Even with Bowles and never-called-plays-before Rah Rah Canales, this ragtag bunch should still be able to scrape up a .500 or better. It’s obvious they will target a QB in the very near future, unless Mayfield completely surprises. The problem with all of this is that with anything besides a total failure, Bowles will be able to claim how great a coach he is, and he will be kept on again.
June 10th, 2023 at 7:01 pm
With all these weapons and talent the Bucs have I don’t see a more explosive offense in the league then what we have here.
June 10th, 2023 at 7:23 pm
Just Leave Trask Alone Says: Blah – Blah – Blah…Mayfield sucks so bad, just look at his NFL numbers. Okay let’s take a look at Trask’s NFL numbers as well.
CMP ATT CMP% YDS AVG TD INT LNG RTG
3 9 33.3 23 2.6 0 0 9 42.4
3 9 33.3 23 2.6 0 0 9 42.4
Yup that’s it dude! No mas! That’s his NFL career in those two lines. And despite the fact that the Bucs obviously have reasons for not giving their heir apparent the starting job, you somehow think you have some special vision to see just how great Trask really is. I think the Bucs should just fire everyone in the front office and make you the GM/HC and we’ll be a shoe in for SB LVIII.
And based on their college/NFL stats, Trask is not a better QB. And it’s okay to have a bromance with Trask but if you’re gonna come here every day and talk trash about Mayfield, maybe you should take a look at their numbers first.
June 10th, 2023 at 7:51 pm
But hey, it was giddy times for the don’t-draft-a-quarterback-in-the-first-round crowd. Life was good (for them).
____________
Yep, and then we drafted one first OVERALL….. and proceeded to win HOW many games over 4 years?
Oh sure, it’s TOTALLY all about the QB.
🤦♂️
June 10th, 2023 at 8:38 pm
Well Josh freeman could’ve been good if he had stayed away from blow and x. Maybe not have gotten fat, and wasn’t weird with like 8 thousand per snakes
June 10th, 2023 at 8:39 pm
Ridder is not Cam Newton or Matt Ryan or Drew Brees. Even if he improves, he’ll never be one of those guys.
June 10th, 2023 at 8:48 pm
Unfortunately it’s not just the Joes who seem to be leaning toward Baker. HC seems to be leaning Baker and it’s too bad we wasted a second round pick on Trask who will likely never see any meaningful snaps.
June 10th, 2023 at 9:00 pm
Dont want the bucs to draft a qb next year BUT in a couple of years there is a qb that may be really really good in texas . His name is Arch . He definitely has the name . Will he be the next great Manning ?? I think yes . Arch Manning in pewter and red sounds good to me .
June 10th, 2023 at 9:08 pm
anyone hoping that Trask will get the job is fooling themselves. If they thought he was the guy, they wouldn’t have brought in a former number one pick. Suck though he may, Baker is what you would consider a seasoned veteran. Listen, I don’t think there’s a ton of difference between them. But baker has seen it and done it. Bowles is coaching for his job. If he thinks Baker can get him two more wins than Trask then that’s who will start. This rebuild on the fly stuff is precarious at best.
June 10th, 2023 at 11:05 pm
Say what you want about Mayfield but Ridder and Young have done absolutely nothing to show they are better than him. Mayfield is no worse than 2nd best QB in the division.
In my book, the odds are against Ridder being decent and the miniscule Young ever being franchise QBs. Sure, Young was drafted #1 overall. There are two examples in the division that shows reality often doesn’t meet hopes. Young is tiny with good but not great tools and comes from a team that had the absolute best talent at every position around him. Gimme a guy that WAS the offense in college and not a recipient of greatness all around him. Ridder… completely unimpressive all the way around. He seems competent but not close to a franchise guy.
June 10th, 2023 at 11:20 pm
All I know for sure is that in 30 days (Aug. 11) we get to SEE these QBs in action at LAST. Preseason or not I just bet every Bucs fan will be glued to TV or radio and maybe these pundits will have to back down a bit on their narratives.
In other news, a former Bucs player (Racheed Morris) saved the life of a 3-year-old from drowning. He took a course in the AED machine and got to use it!
June 11th, 2023 at 3:45 am
So Maybefield is the Man huh Joe?
Bullspit!
Its getting harder every daay to take anything seriously here.
June 11th, 2023 at 7:09 am
No doubt there will be a new head coach that will draft or bring in his guy next year Bowles isn’t a head coach let’s be real a hell of a coordinator just not a head coach and we don’t have the talent under center to compete in a college game let alone a professional professional game seen better quarterback play in these other leagues then what we will field should make for a top 3 pick next year hey that’s something to look forward to definitely not the season
June 11th, 2023 at 7:41 am
Joe in Michigan Says: “There seemed to be a commenter with all of the same exact ‘points’ you make.”
That’s because there are a few – not many, certainly not you – intelligent people posting here.
June 11th, 2023 at 7:42 am
Moe in Michigan Says: “There seemed to be a commenter with all of the same exact ‘points’ you make.”
That’s because there are a few – not many, certainly not you – intelligent people posting here.
June 11th, 2023 at 8:34 am
BOTH BAKER MAYFIELD AND KYLE TRASK HAVE STRONG ARMS & CAN SLING THE BALL AS WELL AS MOST QUARTERBACK’S..THEY SHOULD HAVE DONE WHAT I SUGGESTED WAY BEFORE THE DRAFT & TRADED UP WITH CHICAGO & PICK “ANTHONY RICHARDSON” #1 OVERALL..BUT JASON LIGHT & THE TOP DOGS( IF THEY READ JOE BUC’S FAN ) CHOSE NOT TO TAKE MY ADVICE..HE’S GOING TO BE AT LEAST AS GOOD AS DESHAWN WATSON OR LAMAR JACKSON, IF NOT BETTER IN A SHORT AMOUNT OF TIME (BARRING INJURY )..INSTEAD, DIVISION RIVAL CAROLINA TOOK MY ADVICE & TRADED UP TO GET THEIR MAN INSTEAD..BAKER’S EXPERIENCE WILL ULTIMATELY WIN HIM THE STARTING JOB..I LOVE THE FIREY & STILL YOUNG QUARTERBACK ( I LOVE KYLE TRASK AS WELL (I’M A LIFETIME GATORS FAN & WANTED THE BUC’S TO DRAFT HIM & BAKER A FEW YEARS EARLIER) I’VE BEEN A BUCCANEERS FAN SINCE THE BEGINNING WITH STEVE SPURRIER AS OUR 1ST QUARTERBACK..( NO O.LINE,HE GOT CRUSHED)..BUT, IF WE CAN PROVIDE BAKER WITH ADAQUITE (SPELLED WRONG) PROTECTION, I TRULY BELIEVE THIS COULD BE HIS FINEST SEASON AS A PRO & LEAD THIS GOOD MIXTURE OF VETERAN’S & ROOKIES TO THE DIVISION TITLE & A HOME PLAYOFF GAME..I BELIEVE THE DEFENSE WILL BE TOP NOTCH & THE OFFENSE WILL GET PLENTY OF OPPORTUNITIES TO START WITH GREAT FIELD POSITION & WILL PUT ALOT OF POINTS ON THE BOARD & FINALLY HAVE A KICKER WHO CAN CONVERT FROM OVER 50 YDS CONSISTENTLY WHEN NEEDED..THE DEFENSE GETS FIRED UP WHENEVER THE OFFENSE MANAGES TO PUT POINTS ON THE BOARD, THAT’S THE HISTORY OF A BUCCANEERS DEFENSE. MOMENTUM MEANS EVERYTHING..3 & OUTS JUST WEAR OUT & KILL A DEFENSE, WE WILL BE TOO GOOD & DISAPLINED (SPELLED WRONG) TO ALLOW THAT TO HAPPEN OFTEN THIS SEASON..CONSIDERING OUR CAP SITUATION AT THE BEGINNING, JASON LIGHT & COMPANY HAVE DONE ONE HELL OF A GREAT JOB FILLING THE HOLES CREATED BY BOLTING FREE AGENTS & SALARY CAP CASUALTIES TO PUT TOGETHER , WHAT I BELIEVE TO BE A POTENTIALLY GREAT TEAM, & ONE SO GOOD WE ARE TRULY GOING TO EARN THE LEAGUE’S RESPECT THIS SEASON & BE A FAR BETTER TEAM THAN ANYONE I KNOW WHO COVERS THE NFL ! LET’S GO BUC”S ! FIRE THE CANNONS ! THIS IS GOING TO BE ANOTHER SPECIAL SEASON FOR THIS TEAM, I CAN FEEL IT ! ! !
June 11th, 2023 at 8:40 am
if Desmond Ridder and Bryce Young come of age this fall
Key word ”IF” bucs never drafted a quarterback yet have two super bowls. Carolina and Atlanta have zero and New Orleans couldn’t win one without losing draft pick d coordinator getting fired and coach suspended for like half a season. We still are THE best franchise in the division. One quarterback away from dominating the league again. How many rookie quarterbacks can do that with a veteran team
June 11th, 2023 at 9:39 am
Mayfield is an impossibility. He just won’t get the job done…and I believe Bucs staff knows that.
A team cannot win the superbowl without a good devense…but they can certainly get there without one. But that is gradually changing. Soon, the focus will be on offense.
Running Game
We haven’t seen a good running game since Alstott…and that was because we had fu!lbacks back then.