The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are entering an era without Tom Brady. Similar to when Brady left the New England Patriots to join the Bucs in 2020, things now look grim. Brady is currently still retired at the time of this writing, leaving Tampa Bay to decide between Kyle Trask and Baker Mayfield after not addressing the quarterback position in the 2023 NFL Draft.
2023 Bucs Training Camp
QB Battle: Kyle Trask/Baker Mayfield
The battle wages on, but we have some clarity regarding the first two preseason games. Baker Mayfield will start vs. the Pittsburgh Steelers on Friday, August 11, while Kyle Trask gets the starting nod for the team’s second preseason game against the New York Jets.
From Inside Training Camp: The #Bucs will start Baker Mayfield this week. pic.twitter.com/hGt8QrkC3K
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) August 9, 2023
Who has the edge? As it stands, Mayfield should be the team’s Week 1 starter for the regular season. There is still a month until that happens, so a lot can change, but his experience should have him as the front-runner. He has shown flashes of why he was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft by the Cleveland Browns. Plus, the Buccaneers went after him as a free agent, so they had to have liked something about the young quarterback.
Bucs offensive coordinator Dave Canales reaffirming what we’ve all seen the last couple days in camp: The quarterback competition between Baker Mayfield and Kyle Trask is “absolutely” tighter. pic.twitter.com/HSRaLelUxE
— JennaLaineESPN (@JennaLaineESPN) August 1, 2023
Trask was a second-round pick by Tampa Bay in 2021. He never got too much playing time sitting behind Brady to begin his career as he heads into 2023, completing three of his nine career passes for 23 yards. If he does end up losing the starting quarterback battle to Mayfield, you have to assume the leash won’t be very long before head coach Todd Bowles tries to switch things up and spark the offense with a quarterback switch.
If Week 1 of the preseason is any indication, this won’t be much of a battle. Mayfield clearly outplayed Trask.