Even though the Buccaneers signed Baker Mayfield in free agency in March, the team has not committed to the former No. 1 pick as its starting quarterback in 2023.
Mayfield will have some big shoes to fill, as the Bucs must replace Tom Brady after three successful seasons. After Brady announced his official retirement in February, former coach and current Buccaneers consultant Bruce Arians said the team was in “good hands” with backup Kyle Trask.
But, when Tampa Bay signed Mayfield, it created a competition for the starting job between the two. New offensive coordinator Dave Canales and quarterbacks coach Thad Lewis recently revealed that the plan is for Mayfield and Trask to start the competition on equal footing.
“For me, it’s a win-win when you create a competition,” Canales said, via Fox Sports’s Greg Auman. “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.”
Canales emphasized that he plans to have both quarterbacks “ready” for the starting role no matter whom the team eventually selects as the starter.
“I’m pretty sure the guys will get even reps, and then we just go by seeing what you do every day,” Lewis said, per Auman. “You’re charting incompletions. You’re charting mental errors. Competition makes everybody great.”
The Buccaneers also recently signed former Rams backup QB John Wolford.
