Report: Former Florida QB will compete for starting job in Tampa Bay
After losing future Hall of Famer Tom Brady to retirement, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers may have to turn to former Florida quarterback and second-round pick Kyle Trask to lead the team in 2023.
On Saturday, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reported that Tampa would consider Trask for the starting role during a Super Bowl week update. The main reason Trask is getting the shot isn’t that he’s the heir apparent to the GOAT, though. Tampa is in a precarious position financially and can’t afford to get an elite replacement without giving up some major pieces.
“Caught up with a few Bucs players in Phoenix who believe Trask will get a shot at QB1 for Tampa,” Fowler reported. “The feeling is Trask’s draft pedigree as a second-round pick, coupled with a scarcity of realistic options on the market, will get him on the field.”
This isn’t the first time Trask has had to prove himself. He was a three-star recruit out of high school that only got a shot at starting for Florida because an injury took down the guy ahead of him during his fifth year with the program.
Trask rose to the occasion, finishing fourth in the 2020 Heisman Trophy vote after putting up 4,283 passing yards and throwing for 43 touchdowns. The Buccaneers spent the 64th overall pick on Trask in 2021 and he’s quietly sat on the bench until now.
Tampa Bay gave Trask just one regular season opportunity to show his stuff over the past two years, but now he’ll practice with the first team. Underwhelming preseason numbers might have Bucs fans panicking, but Trask wouldn’t have gone so high in the draft if Tampa didn’t see him as a starting option down the road.
Perhaps Brady’s retirement has accelerated the timeline a bit for Trask’s coronation as the team’s starting signal caller, but he must have learned something behind Brady and came into the league with an obviously talented arm.
Things could change over the next few months, but right now it’s Trask’s time to shine in Tampa.
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