Buccaneers: Kyle Trask debut was better than it seemed

Kyle Trask finished the preseason opener for the Buccaneers with a less than stellar stat line, but his game was much better than it seemed.

As always, when discussing a quarterback from the state of Florida, helmet scouting has no place here. The only team that matters for Kyle Trask now is the Buccaneers.

Trask kicked off his career for the Bucs last night in the 2021 preseason opener against the Bengals. The rookie quarterback finished the game with four completions on 15 attempts for 35 yards and a two-point conversion, but Trask’s game was much more than the box score.

Sure, some fans may see an abysmal stat line like this and a lack of touchdowns and label Trask as a bust, but this game actually showed much more good than bad if you look beyond the stats.

Whether he plays excellent over the coming weeks or struggles, it is essential to remember that Trask will not play a significant role on this team for at least two years. The Bucs drafted Trask to eventually serve as an option to replace Tom Brady when he decides to retire, but that is still a long way off. Evaluating Trask on how he plays now as if he is already in contention to start is disingenuous.

The proper way to evaluate Trask is to look at each rep in an isolated manner to make sure that he is making “NFL-caliber plays” in an attempt to show he can eventually string together plays like that with a higher volume of opportunities.

When looking at last night, Kyle Trask showed off NFL-ready talent with players who did not match his energy. Regardless of dropped passes or mistakes by the receivers, Trask did everything required of an NFL quarterback.

The newest Buccaneer QB sat comfortably in the pocket, extended plays with his legs, put zip on the ball, and showed a willingness to push the ball down the field.

The misses weren’t dangerous, Trask didn’t try to force too much, and it is worth noting that he did all of this without the starters around him.

Trask took several shots deep, and while none were completed, the ball got there quickly, the receivers were in position to make plays, and Trask even hit one player in the hands outside the numbers 30 yards downfield.

The timing wasn’t there yet, but Trask eased suspicions about his ability to throw the ball deep, which is an extremely important skill in the Buccaneer offense.

Ironically enough, one of Trask’s worst plays was actually the one that most people have seen the most. The two-point conversion was an impressive looking play, but Trask airing the ball out in the end zone off his back foot while under pressure was far from advisable.

The play ended up as a completion, but that was one of the least NFL-ready plays of the night for the rookie.

The good news for Trask is that he has plenty of time to learn in the coming weeks. The Buccaneers are one of the best teams in the league for a rookie to join to develop, and Kyle Trask proved last night that he is a player worth developing.

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