Buccaneers Rankings: How the quarterbacks in the NFC South stack up
No fanbase wants to see the backups enter the fold, but if they do, it’s nice to know there’s a good one waiting to come in.
The NFC South probably has one of the better backup situations compared to the other divisions in the league, but it doesn’t mean they’re all good ones.
4. Derek Anderson, Carolina Panthers
If the Panthers have to go away from Newton for any reason, the prospects of their backup coming in and carrying them to victory are slim-to-none.
Derek Anderson has carved himself a very nice career which I’m certain has earned he and his family plenty of money to be comfortable moving forward as he nears the end of his NFL days.
Still, he’s not going to be competing for a starting job any time soon, and while he may be ok with it, the fans won’t be if they need him to get starter snaps.
In 2016 Anderson came in for five games on the year and threw 53 passes. Five of those ended up in the hands of the defense, or 10%.
His 67.6% quarterback rating could be blamed on his lack of exposure to the field in recent years as he hasn’t had more than 100 attempts in a single season since 2010.
Still, if this is what your 33-year old backup brings to the field, then this team is going to hope more than others they don’t have to see him out there in 2017.
3. Chase Daniel, New Orleans Saints
Once, there was part of me who looked at Chase Daniel as the Saints’ insurance policy in case Drew Brees suffered a catastrophic injury or simply started to suck.
Then, Brees kept producing, so Daniel left for backup stints in Kansas City and Philadelphia before returning this off-season to where his comfortable journey began.
I say comfortable because this quarterback has been sacked a total of seven times in his career with only one interception thrown and a 81.1 career quarterback rating.
So there’s the good, now for the bad.
He hasn’t thrown more than 38 passes in a single season to this point and also has just one career touchdown toss to go with his pick.
Daniel’s inexperienced on a live NFL field, we all know this. It doesn’t mean he’s incapable of being effective when needed though, and his less worn-down body means he has a solid chance at doing some damage if called upon should Brees suffer an unfortunate injury.
2. Matt Schaub, Atlanta Falcons
Once, there was a part of me who saw Matt Schaub as Michael Vick’s replacement for the Falcons.
Then he went to Houston and laid down some pretty average film while never really taking the Texans where they wanted to go.
Still, he proved to be a guy who could manage a game and at least not lose it every week.
Is he perfect? Of course not, but if he were then he wouldn’t be a backup now would he?
What he is, is experienced, effective and the kind of guy who can keep the ship afloat should Matt Ryan go down for around 1-5 Weeks in the season.
The last time he saw solid action he tossed 80 passes in two games for the Baltimore Ravens. He did end up with more interceptions than touchdowns during that span, but his 76 passer rating is about what you’d expect from a backup veteran.
Having a serviceable backup isn’t exciting, but it certainly feels better than having – oh – Bryce Petty as your projected backup.
Must Read: 5 Bucs Who Must Step-Up
1. Ryan Fitzpatrick, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Many felt the Buccaneers backup quarterback situation was in a bit of turmoil once Mike Glennon headed off for a starting opportunity in Chicago.
Enter Ryan Fitzpatrick, and the fanbase can find a little bit of comfort in knowing their second-string passer was a starting NFL quarterback just a year ago.
Elephant in the room time, yes he threw 17 interceptions, and yes six of them came in one game.
This isn’t necessarily a negative though. I mean, six came in one game, and it was during a really bad couple of weeks where he threw nine combined in just two games.
Outside of those two, Fitzpatrick threw multiple picks in just two more games and had six games with no interceptions at all.
If we’re going to crucify the veteran for his two-week poor showing, let’s also praise him for the five weeks he put together later where he threw just three picks compared to five touchdowns.
Fitzpatrick has a reputation for playing really well when he’s forced to prove his value. If he has to come in for an injured Winston – knock on wood – you can bet he’ll be out to prove a few things.