Why the Bucs should replace Tom Brady with Lamar Jackson in 2023

Before you read that headline and write this off as a ridiculous proposition, think about the fact that Tom Brady ended up playing for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the first place.

Consider the fact that the greatest quarterback of all time, when given the opportunity to choose his own destination as a free agent, picked the franchise with the lowest all-time winning percentage in NFL history.

That being the case, let’s keep our minds open to those kinds of possibilities when we think about who the Bucs could target to replace Brady next season, assuming that 2022 is the last year we see the GOAT on the field.

Here’s why Lamar Jackson makes plenty of sense as Brady’s successor in Tampa Bay next season:

What Lamar wants

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Let’s start with the only reason this is even a possibility at this point.

Jackson is heading into the final year of his rookie deal, and still hasn’t signed an extension with the Baltimore Ravens.

Clearly, there’s some disconnect or divide between the two sides here, or this would have been handled a long time ago, as it usually is for franchise quarterbacks who already have an NFL MVP award under their belt.

Maybe the Ravens are low-balling Jackson because they don’t value him on the same level as Patrick Mahomes or Josh Allen. Maybe that’s because their offense has continued to revolve around Jackson’s running ability instead of giving him an expansive passing game that takes advantage of his arm talent.

Hall of Fame quarterback Steve Young recently broke this down on ESPN, pointing out that the Ravens’ run-heavy attack is actually holding Jackson back from maximizing his lofty potential as a passer:

Maybe Jackson wants to hit the open market next offseason, so he can see which teams might offer him the chance to prove himself in a more balanced offense that’s willing to feature his passing ability, instead of keeping him contained and reinforcing the false narrative that he’s “just a running quarterback.” Maybe he wants to see if there’s a team out there that believes in his ability to be an elite passer, and is willing to give him the chance, and pay him accordingly.

Maybe Jackson wants to play for another contender that’s been willing to invest in weapons for the passing game; a team that’s proven in recent years that they’ll do whatever it takes to maximize their championship window.

What the Bucs want

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If Brady indeed rides off into the sunset after the 2022 season, the Bucs will be left with a massive hole at the game’s most important position.

When the Bucs spent a second-round pick in last year’s draft on Kyle Trask, they were hopeful he could develop as Brady’s understudy, and eventually take over for him. Trask was inactive for every game of his rookie season, as veteran Blaine Gabbert served as Brady’s backup. Trask has shown flashes of development and potential in the preseason, but has also been inconsistent during training camp.

If the Bucs are still serious about remaining a Super Bowl contender next year, it’s hard to imagine they’ll have seen enough from Trask by the end of this year to know whether or not he’s ready to lead their talented roster back to the top of the mountain.

That means it wouldn’t be surprising if the Bucs want to see what’s behind “Door No. 2” again this offseason, just as they did when they let Jameis Winston (the franchise’s all-time leading passer) walk in free agency back in 2020. That decision ended up leading them to Brady (which was their hope all along), but the GOAT won’t be on the market this time.

The list of free agent quarterbacks set to hit the market next year is uninspiring, with the exception of Jackson. There’s always the trade route, but don’t expect there to be a Russell Wilson-type passer available on that market this time around.

Trask is still under contract for two more years after the 2022 season, so he could still be Tampa Bay’s fallback option, should they miss out on Jackson. If the Bucs make an all-in push to land the Ravens’ QB, they could do so with the insurance that Trask is still there, should it not materialize.

Why it makes sense for both

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Even if Brady rides into the sunset after this year, the Bucs will still have a loaded roster on both sides of the ball, and would still be a prime landing spot for any quarterback who wants a chance at winning a Super Bowl.

That being the case, they’ll have plenty to offer a superstar passer like Jackson.

If Jackson were to sign with the Bucs, he’d have an elite group of pass-catching weapons he’s never had in Baltimore, headlined by a pair of Pro Bowl receivers in (future Hall of Famer) Mike Evans and Chris Godwin. The offensive line is still one of the better units in the NFL, led by All-Pro right tackle Tristan Wirfs.

Tampa Bay’s defense will still have star players at every level, helping to keep the pressure off the offense to score a million points every game, or mount comeback wins every week.

Tampa Bay’s offensive scheme is vertical-heavy in the passing game, which would finally give Jackson the opportunity to show off his prowess through the air. Between that scheme and the talented weapons Jackson would have at his disposal, it would also open things up for Jackson to take off running when necessary, still allowing him to be the dynamic playmaker he’s always been with the ball in his hands. There might be less schemed running than he had in Baltimore, but his value as a runner would be just the same, perhaps with even more room to take advantage of it.

It’s also worth considering that Byron Leftwich might still be the offensive coordinator for the Bucs next season. It’s possible Leftwich could finally get the head-coaching job he should have already been given at this point, but after two straight offseasons of getting passed up, it wouldn’t be impossible to imagine Leftwich staying in Tampa Bay to keep running one of the league’s most explosive offenses until another team wises up and lets him run their show.

If that’s the case, Jackson would get the opportunity to work with an offensive coordinator who knows all too well the challenges that come with being a Black quarterback in the NFL. After a decorated college career at Marshall, Leftwich was the No. 7 overall pick in the 2003 NFL draft, and spent nine years quarterbacking in the league before moving into coaching.

Speaking of the personal side of things for Jackson, he’s a Florida man himself, hailing from the Boca Raton area on the Atlantic side of the state. Being just a few hours from home after spending five years in Baltimore might be a refreshing change for Jackson.

What about the money?

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Wait, how could the Bucs afford to break the bank on a superstar quarterback in his prime, after all the salary cap hoops they’ve jumped through in recent years just to keep their current window open with Brady?

Well, because they have a front office full of all-stars that will just keep jumping through those same hoops, moving money around however they can to make sure they keep contending for championships for as long as possible.

General manager Jason Licht and his stellar team (John Spytek, Mike Greenberg, Jackie Davidson, Mike Biehl, Rob McCartney) have been among the league’s best at finding creative ways to structure contracts and balance the checkbook. That’s not likely to stop anytime soon, and such an approach would include how they stack the money in Jackson’s contract in order to push bigger cap hits further into the future to make more room in the present.

Yes, at some point, that bill has to come due, but if the Bucs have to kick the can a little further down the road in order to land a big fish like Jackson, they’ve proven they’re willing and able to do just that.

From Jackson’s side of things, don’t discount the fact that there’s no state income tax in Florida, something all NFL free agents are well aware of in these discussions.

The Bottom Line

(AP Photo/Nick Wass)

The Ravens would be making a huge mistake letting Jackson get out of their building. But they’ve already made a mistake in not handing him a blank check, as well as failing to build a balanced offensive scheme around him that allows him to feature his complete skill set. Every day that Jackson doesn’t have an extension in Baltimore makes it more likely that this will end with both sides parting ways.

If that happens, and Jackson hits the market next year, there will be no other team that makes more sense as a potential landing spot than Tampa Bay. They’ll still have a loaded roster ready to make another Super Bowl run, and replacing Brady with Jackson would extend that title window for a while yet. He would be back in his home state, with the most talented, explosive offense he’s ever had, and a scheme that would allow him to prove wrong the haters who are still claiming he can’t be an consistently effective passer.

If both sides agree that this makes too much sense, the money won’t stop it from happening. The Bucs have proven that when they want a player, they’ll do whatever it takes to make the money work.

For all of those reasons, Jackson in Tampa Bay next season just makes too much sense for everyone involved.

Story originally appeared on Buccaneers Wire