TAMPA, Fla. – Buccaneers Head Coach Todd Bowles says the quarterback competition between Baker Mayfield and Kyle Trask is wide open. Not having Tom Brady doesn’t mean they can’t win, and forget about Lamar Jackson coming to the Bucs.
“We’re shedding a lot of money,” Bowles said, talking to reporters at the NFL Annual Meeting in Phoenix. “It would be an insult to a great player like that. “We know we have to get under the salary cap, and he (Jackson) makes a lot of money. But he is a heck of a player, and I hate playing against him.”
Bowles and new offensive coordinator Dave Canales are trying to get Baker Mayfield and Kyle Trask up to speed on a new offense.
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Bowles says Trask has just as good of a chance at starting week one and is doing more preparation than anyone knows.
“I think Kyle has a lot of moxie that you don’t get to see,” Bowles said.”Kyle does more work on the side, away from the cameras. Every time I look up and come in the office, he’s out there working by himself, trying to get better.’
As for Mayfield?
“He’s working his tail off,” Bowles said. “I think I’ll have a very good relationship. We’ve been honest day one since he came in.”
Bowles says he’s not too concerned about some of the upgrades the other teams in the NFC South (including the Saints with QB Derek Carr) have made. Bowles says the Bucs are strictly focused on making their roster stronger.
Oh, and not having Tom Brady anymore doesn’t mean the Bucs are destined to relinquish their NFC crown.
“That doesn’t mean you take a step down as far as the process of trying to win,” Bowles said. “I think the guys understand that. We have some great players on our team. We just don’t have the greatest (Tom Brady) on our team.”
Bowles also said they’re currently trying to figure out whether they bring in a veteran or a young quarterback.
Bowles stressed the Bucs are not rebuilding; they are retooling and upgrading or, in his words, looking for good players.
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