Tom Brady‘s retirement from the NFL in February forced the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to go back to the drawing board at the quarterback position entering the 2023 season. Brady gave the Bucs three successful seasons, highlighted by a Super Bowl LV victory, and their next quarterback some big shoes to fill.
Tampa Bay signed quarterback former No. 1 pick Baker Mayfield in March to a one-year deal after stints with the Cleveland Browns, Carolina Panthers, and the Los Angeles Rams. And Kyle Trask has been Brady’s backup quarterback for the last two seasons, drafted in the second round of the 2021 NFL Draft out of Florida.
Mayfield and Trask are expected to compete for the starting quarterback job heading into the season, a situation that new offensive coordinator Dave Canales revealed to Fox’s Greg Auman as one he’s pleased with.
“For me, it’s a win-win when you create a competition,” Canales said, “Here’s why: If you name a starter today, the backup guy starts thinking like that. But if you say this is a competition, we’re going to allow [them] to go into the preseason, let them show us they can manage, to get us into the right play, to take care of the ball, that’s going to be the determining factor, really.”
This is Canales first gig as an offensive coordinator and playcaller after spending five seasons with the Seattle Seahawks organization. But he and quarterbacks coach Thad Lewis both agree that an even competition between Mayfield and Trask will only elevate their team overall.
“I’m pretty sure the guys will get even reps, and then we just go by seeing what you do every day,” Lewis said. “You’re charting incompletions. You’re charting mental errors. Competition makes everybody great.”
Mayfield versus Trask
There’s no question that Baker Mayfield brings more experience to the table compared to Kyle Trask heading into their quarterback battle. Mayfield is entering his seventh year in the NFL and is playing for his fourth team in three years. In his career, he’s thrown for 16,288 yards, 102 touchdowns, and 64 interceptions and could be the answer to Tampa Bay’s quarterback question.
Kyle Trask is entering just his third year in the NFL, and does not have nearly as much playing time under his belt. Trask has appeared in just one regular season game in his career with Tampa Bay, completing three passes for 23 yards. Tampa Bay selected him No. 64 overall in the 2021 NFL Draft after throwing for 4,283 yards and 43 touchdowns in his final college season at Florida.
