The Tampa Bay Buccaneers need to find out what they have in Kyle Trask. What better time for the Buccaneers to start than the 2022 season finale?
It’s no secret that Tom Brady is likely on borrowed time with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, which means the Buccaneers will likely be exploring all options at quarterback after this season. There are likely to be a ton of veteran options they could bring in, and depending on how the season ends, potentially to draft.
Speaking of the draft, the Bucs spent a second round pick on Kyle Trask in 2021. Whether they bring in a veteran or not, they can use a new veteran or even Blaine Gabbert as some sort of bridge until they figure out what to do with Trask. They can play him in spot duty, or just outright start him, so they can proceed with future plans at quarterback. Regardless, they can’t do anything until they know what they have in the former Florida Gators signal caller.
On the topic of spot duty, the season finale against the Atlanta Falcons is the perfect opportunity for this. Brady and the rest of the starters should obviously begin the game, in an effort to sustain any sort of rhythm heading into the playoffs. Given how the season is going to this point, they should take whatever they can get.
Having said that, since this game is meaningless as far as standings go, then why not trot out Trask for the fourth quarter, second half, or more? The Buccaneers can treat this game like a preseason game, except Trask will get exposure against a real NFL defense. Obviously, the curious case of Trask will not be solved in this fashion, but it would certainly be a start.
The thing to consider is, just because Brady hypothetically wouldn’t finish the game, doesn’t mean that the rest of the offensive starters have to get yanked as well. The Bucs can give Trask some playing time with the starting offense, and try to get him more familiar.
At the end of the day, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have a decent sized fish to fry now that they are officially hosting a playoff game as reigning kings of the NFC South. However, that doesn’t mean that they cannot look ahead, and prepare for what seems like an inevitable future without Tom Brady.