Ex-QB: Bucs Training Camp Interceptions A Non-Issue
August 10th, 2023
“Baker, let’s keep a little perspective over here.”
Quarterback obsessed Bucs fans that wave a Kyle Trask flag every morning quickly point to Baker Mayfield leading the team in training camp interceptions.
Joe isn’t denying the numbers, but as any coach will tell you, each interception is its own unique animal. Each pick sort of tells its own unique story.
In Buccaneers training camp, with a brand new offense and a first-time playcaller, those interceptions by Trask and Mayfield aren’t much of a concern, says retired Bucs QB Shaun King.
King was a guest on WDAE radio yesterday and threw cold water on the interception totals because of the learning curve and realities of summer practice. He’d have a different view, King said, if Mayfield and Trask were entering their third year of the same offense.
“You gotta remember, like these guys are running some of these plays for the first time,” King said. “They’re still trying to get comfortable with the verbiage, with the checks, how do we adjust the protections at the line of scrimmage. So it’s a lot going on mentally and sometimes that leads to indecision and errant throws. I always think when you’re in a new system, there are going to be some mistakes made during training camp.”
Of course, the playing field for the two quarterbacks is nearly identitical. So if one guy is making more mistakes than the other, then it carries some meaning.
However, only coaches know who is making the correct read and the timely read. Also, only coaches have tracking date on which QB is getting the rid of the ball quicker.
One grading nugget did leak out yesterday. General manager Jason Licht told SiriuisXM NFL Radio that Mayfield has been more accurate on deep throws this summer.
August 10th, 2023 at 9:57 am
King is absolutely right, the micromanaging of training camp interceptions is the dumbest thing Bucs media and fans are doing right now.
August 10th, 2023 at 10:05 am
Baker throws picks during the season too…are those a non-issue as well? He has the most since he’s been in the league and now when he does it in practice it’s no big deal? Um ok….
August 10th, 2023 at 10:12 am
I thought King said people inside the walls of one Buc was telling him Kyle stinks lol! So interception mattered in OTA’s but not training camp! I think to ignore Baker penchant for throwing Int’s is ludicrous! Let the battle play out personally I think we know Bakers ceiling he will be functional he will probably get the start but you can’t deny old habits are hard to break!
August 10th, 2023 at 10:18 am
How can one QB be better than another when they have almost double the interceptions.
We have a couple of preseason games to sort that out, but the odds are again stacked against Trask. He has to play the first away game against a team his coach coached into the ground..
If Hot Toddie really wants Duh Baker to be the ONE, then man up and do it. Be sure to say how long Duh Baker’s leash will be.
Trask can handle it, he has for his entire career. Be sure to be ready for the shockwave if it blows up though.
If you want to be a winning coach, make winning decisions; ready player one?
August 10th, 2023 at 10:25 am
King spins as well as most bias
August 10th, 2023 at 10:25 am
Joe forgets to mention that Shaun King is the guy who said earlier this summer that “Kyle Trask stinks.” So King is obviously going to “throw cold water on the interception totals” because (1) Trask outplaying Mayfield makes King look like the idiot he is, and (2) he was an interception machine himself.
August 10th, 2023 at 10:31 am
Yeah… okay. Guess we should ignore the saying “The team plays like they practice.” But hey, “We talking about practice man… not a game… not a game. But, practice.” Look how that turned out. But, both player are in this scheme for the first time. 🤯
August 10th, 2023 at 10:40 am
Lets see if these picks the steelers are gonna put on Baker matter.
August 10th, 2023 at 10:41 am
Its a quarterback competition. Everything counts. Because it is a new offense, you gotta believe one of the aspects that is being looked at is the ability to not give the ball away. Its ok for King to be misinformed because they never let him throw the ball because of his tiny hands.
August 10th, 2023 at 10:42 am
But who is better at handing the ball off?
August 10th, 2023 at 10:46 am
This guy again? He’s as much of a Gem as Cowherd.
People make excuses for BM’s poor play @ the Panther’s because he got there late and didn’t have time to learn the plays and system. Once he rose to his true potential there he asked to be let go. That was just a case of quit before you get fired. Then he goes to LA and in a couple days is getting praised for how fast he could learn, prepare to play,and win against the Raiders. Couldn’t learn the plays of the Panthers in months but becomes Superman in 48hours. Right.
Watched Panther Practices for 2022 and everything was identical except the colors. Guy blitzed Mayfield and he threw it right to a LB for a pick six. No offensive scheme says when in trouble it’s OK to throw it to the other team at your own 10. Nothing about learning had anything to do with it. Poor Play. Period.
Even the Completion with Darnold was quoted as dead even. Too close to call.
Mayfield got the nod and the rest is history.
At least Mayfield can keep fooling folks. King could not fool anyone and started a whooping 24 games. Although King has the advantage of not being sub 500 in Wins and Losses Baker was able to get to his fourth team a year earlier than King.
August 10th, 2023 at 10:46 am
Shawn King is a well documented Mayfield fan/Trask hater, so anything he says is no more reliable than what JBF says or writes.
And JBF never tires of insulting his own readers. Very curious way to do business, fella!
As for training camp interceptions, they obviously should not be considered the same way as in game situations. Sometimes, as apparently happened earlier this week in Bucs training camp, quarterbacks are instructed to loft the ball up where a contested catch is the result, simply to give their DBs some practice in bringing down INTs instead of just batting the ball away. We know for a fact that Bowles wanted exactly that, so the big 5 interception practice a few days ago was not on the quarterbacks.
In any event, it is not the total interception count that matters in practice, it is the relative interception count. Prior to the practice earlier this week where both QBs were told to loft it up, the ratio of Mayfield INTs to Trask INTs was around 4:1. That is telling and is not inconsequential.
But the better tests start tonight with the pre-season games against actual competitors, even if the competition isn’t much like what we’ll see in Weeks 1-18 or the playoffs. If one QB is clearly taking care of the ball in those three games, and the other is not, that makes a very easy call for the coaches in selecting the starter for Week 1.
Everything else is just yakking.
August 10th, 2023 at 11:01 am
Everyone here can rationalize anything they want to believe! And they do! A couple of weeks from now we will know for sure who the starting QB will be. I’m happy to see some sort of Bucs football tomorrow!! We’ll have a better idea what the younger guys are capable of and if the previous draft picks are improving. Let the fun begin. Go Bucs!
August 10th, 2023 at 11:08 am
I love when you Trask homers bring up Mayfield’s 64 interceptions over the past five years. Well guess who’s in second place? Josh Allen with 60! And, even you Baker Haters have to admit that Allen played for a much better team, in a much more stable organization than Baker did. The Browns screwed Baker by trading him to the Panthers in July… and the Panthers were a lousy team offensively … then they trade McCaffry when they decided to tank the season. So, calm down and wise up… Go Bucs.
August 10th, 2023 at 11:31 am
@WyomingJoe,
Yeah, people tend to bring up the OBVIOUS! Why don’t you settle yourself down and buy yourself a clue Skippy ….
You can just love you the reining Interception Champ all you want. Doesn’t mean the rest of are buying what you’re selling.
August 10th, 2023 at 11:31 am
I would rather hear where King eats out at, same offense, same practices, same situation for both learning new offense.
August 10th, 2023 at 11:34 am
The FACT IS that Trask IS MOST CERTAINLY taking better care of the ball. THAT’S A FACT.
However, it does not mean I’m in love with either one of them… WE WILL SEE!
GO BUCS!
August 10th, 2023 at 11:39 am
Has a Bucs fan, I will support whomever is chosen. I noticed her screen is falling apart
August 10th, 2023 at 11:43 am
Damn Joe, you really are a pos. Oh well, I guess it won’t even matter who starts behind that OL with a center who somehow hasn’t mastered the art of snapping the ball. Hopefully Kyle gets cut next year and goes to a far less dysfunctional organization.
August 10th, 2023 at 12:07 pm
Now interceptions mean nothing because the guy you thought would do better didn’t? So you move the goalpost to some unknown, mystical , secret, unstated , evaluation method ? How many times will the goal post have to be moved in order to get the guy you want to start? Oh. Interceptions don’t really matter, Fumbles don’t really matter, losses don’t really matter? So, what exactly is it that does matter?
August 10th, 2023 at 12:16 pm
I don’t want to see Mayfield playing, but the people that care about this stuff are just Florida fanbois who will grab onto anything, and be extra obnoxious about it.
Part of camp should be trying different things to see what the results are – it shouldn’t be playing it safe like you’re Mike Glennon in the 4th quarter of game where you’re down by 17.
What they should do at this point is tell Trask to be more aggressive and see if he starts turning it over or not.
But it’s worth repeating what Bowles said, that he wants a QB that first and foremost isn’t concerned about scoring points, but winning the turnover column – and Trask has done that. So if Bowles is preaching that idiocy to the team, Trask has delivered.
Again, I want Trask starting – I want to see what he can do. We already know what Mayfield is, and that is the worst starting QB in football over the last two years. I don’t want to see that.
August 10th, 2023 at 12:32 pm
tbbucs^^^ couldnt agree more. I love the notes from the joes each training camp, but i dont make any judgements from reading them anymore..
The guys are busting their ass and hopefully the best 53 make the team. Then lets go kick the vikings ass!
August 10th, 2023 at 1:22 pm
Off topic . This will turn out to be JLs best draft ever with the bucs .
August 10th, 2023 at 1:36 pm
I could have sworn that the “Ex QB” quoted would be either JW or Dilfer.
August 10th, 2023 at 1:47 pm
LOL King
August 10th, 2023 at 2:15 pm
This sales job is now becoming distasteful and annoying.
August 10th, 2023 at 2:15 pm
Shaun King is the G.O.A.T.
Not the greatest of all time, just an old goat responsible for a lot of Bucs losses.
Let’s see how the next two games go before we annoit a successor to Tom Brady.
August 10th, 2023 at 2:20 pm
@Toad Bowels Shaun King was 14-8 as a starter in Tampa. Just shows you’re a Trask stan and not a real fan
August 10th, 2023 at 3:02 pm
Wolford is there qb by week 8
August 10th, 2023 at 3:11 pm
@Dale He has the least picks so far, so maybe!
August 10th, 2023 at 3:13 pm
They said the same about Jameis….. Ohhhh.. Don’t stress the training camp pickoffs
August 10th, 2023 at 3:32 pm
@wyomingjoe
And exactly how much more did Josh Allen play compared to Mayfield? I’ll wait
August 10th, 2023 at 3:54 pm
Huh …
Doesn’t that suggest one QB understands the offense better? Understanding the offense, moving the ball, without turning it over (INTs and Fumbles&) would all seem like determining factors when deciding which QB is better suited for the job.
August 10th, 2023 at 4:04 pm
LMAO here. I’ll try and remember those camp interceptions by Mayfield meant nothing. Especially when he starts throwing them in real game time.
August 10th, 2023 at 7:15 pm
Why? Does the Defense not get the tip of the hat? Slap on the back, because you know the practice before, their PC, DC and HC said to increase attacking and getting after the ball. Get some INTs, that’s a Success, right?
I agree INTs in training camp with a new offense is not bad. The offense needs to test their own new game plan scheme against our very solid defense. From front to back, we have skill players, and some solid depth and draft choices players on defense. Very good to see them have and not have Ints in training camp. Now in those “unneeded” Pre-season games. That is where I do not want to see INTs. Training camp is for training, when you hit the field and cross the line and step out on the field. You are live-action, not practice.
GO!!!!!BUCS!!!!!
August 10th, 2023 at 7:19 pm
So the retread Baker will start first. Kinda glad really cause if he stumbles and fumbles right out of the gate it would work in Trasks favor if he does better in game two. Honestly I don’t really know if Trask is ready but I hope he out plays Baker. Fun to cheer for the underdog who the Bucs ignored for so long. Bucs were caught with their panties down when Brady crashed and burned in both his personal and football life.
August 10th, 2023 at 8:37 pm
Maybe don’t cut down any of your QBs? These comments on this sight are plain ignorant and stupid. Lamar threw 4 INTs in ONE SESSION. Mahomes threw 5 in just one a couple years ago. Bakers literally in a entirely new offense and team while Trask is not. Yall WANT Baker to fail. You’d legit rather see him fail then succeed cause you don’t like him.
August 10th, 2023 at 8:52 pm
One thing this pic proves. Mayfield is not tall.
August 10th, 2023 at 10:37 pm
What a mess of soup……you know …easy for da Baker Haters….to trash him when you watched him play maybe 10 times…less…..I watched him play live ,,, at O.U. watched him come off the bench , game behind to give Browns first victory in 2 years,,, you want 9-10 victorys, and make run at playoffs……….(oh I believed him all along…..see my jersey)……he loves being the underdog…..your welcome “Buccaneers “
August 11th, 2023 at 2:43 am
Shaun King= Zero credibility
SKIP
Go Bucs!
August 11th, 2023 at 4:27 am
All that’s B.S. both QBs are in a new system only difference is One of them turn the ball over extremely more then the other…. So whatever Mr. King we’ve seen your highlights as a buccaneer and welp let’s just say ….Moving On.