With Baker Mayfield sidelined for multiple weeks with his thumb injury, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are set to start undrafted rookie quarterback Jalon Daniels against the Green Bay Packers on Sunday. That game will mark the earliest that an undrafted rookie QB has started a game in NFL history.
If the first three weeks of the NFL season are any indication, Buccaneers fans might have something to hope for with Daniels under center. After Case Keenum's Monday Night Football showing for the Chicago Bears, quarterbacks who were not the Week 1 starter are 6-0 this year. It's the longest such streak since the 1970 merger.
Unfortunately for Tampa Bay, Daniels' inexperience makes him an obvious candidate to end that streak. The Buccaneers are throwing the rookie to the wolves, and they'll have to live with the results.
Buccaneers can only blame themselves if Jalon Daniels falls flat
The other five quarterbacks (Keenum, Drew Lock, Marcus Mariota, Jameis Winston, and Carson Wentz) share a common trait. They have each started at least 29 games in the NFL.
Daniels hadn't even thrown a pass in the league before Mayfield went down, let alone started a game. In fact, he still hasn't completed a pass, as two of his three attempts in the loss to the Minnesota Vikings fell incomplete, with the other getting intercepted.
Against a Packers defense hungry to get back on track, nobody will be surprised if Daniels struggles to find any sort of rhythm. With a depleted group of wide receivers, this would be a difficult situation for a rookie first-round pick. As an undrafted rookie, Daniels is set up to fail.
If he does struggle, it won't be his fault. While he showed some encouraging flashes in the preseason, the Buccaneers never should have entered the regular season with an undrafted rookie as their only backup quarterback. Sure, Mayfield has a history of fighting through injuries, but it was always too big a risk to ignore the depth behind him.
Todd Bowles said that Mayfield is expected to miss at least three weeks with his thumb injury. Over those three weeks, the Buccaneers play the Packers, the Dallas Cowboys, and the Pittsburgh Steelers. Even if they bring in another quarterback, Tampa Bay will be significant underdogs in each of those games.
An 0-6 start to a pivotal season is very much on the table, and the Buccaneers can only blame themselves.
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