Buccaneers: Tom Brady came at the right time for O.J. Howard

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers had a ‘home run’ signing earlier in the free-agency period and it might have came at the perfect time.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers made the announcement a couple of weeks ago that they had signed QB Tom Brady to a two-year, $50 million deal.

While many are talking about the prospect of Brady leading the Buccaneers to the NFL Playoffs and what it could mean for the organization moving forward, there is an individual player who could benefit greatly from the signing Brady- and the signing has come at the perfect timing.

O.J. Howard has not had the career that many Buccaneers fans had hoped for since he was drafted by Tampa Bay in the first-round of the 2017 NFL Draft.

In his first three seasons with the Buccaneers, he has caught just 94 receptions for 1,456 yards and 12 touchdowns. Howard looked as if he was primed to take a step forward after a better 2018 season, but regressed in just about every statistical category in 2019.

While Bruce Arians’ system doesn’t necessarily lend itself to a tight end catching a ton of passes, Howard has several bad drops and missed out on some big opportunities to prove himself over the course of the season. As a matter of fact, there are many fans and analysts who have speculated that Tampa Bay should trade him to get another pick or two in the upcoming draft.

Though Howard hasn’t shown that first-round talent yet, Tom Brady could be coming at the perfect time.

Brady is a quarterback who is going to get the ball out quickly. While he’ll take shots down the field, he’s going to take what the defense gives him and that will certainly include utilizing the tight end.

If Howard is going to ever reach that potential, it’s going to happen here in the next couple of seasons with Brady at the helm. The quarterback has shown a history of utilizing the tight end- Rob Gronkowski is the best example- and Howard has the talent to develop into the next great tight end to play with Brady.