The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have a huge void to fill on their roster this off-season. Future Hall of Fame quarterback, Tom Brady, announced his retirement on Wednesday morning, leaving the Buccaneers without a starting quarterback and other teams around the league scrambling to adjust their plans accordingly.
The only quarterback currently on the roster in Tampa Bay is Kyle Trask, so there will be players brought in this off-season. Which direction the team opts to go, however, is anyone’s guess.
Most likely, general manager Jason Licht will look for a veteran to take over the offense. Given the current outlook in the NFC South, there is very little in the way of Tampa Bay repeating as division champions. Landing someone such as Derek Carr or Jimmy Garoppolo would help them remain in that position.
But, given the status of their roster, the Buccaneers could look to go younger at the position with a long-term outlook. If that is the case, they could show some interest in Justin Fields of the Chicago Bears.
The Bears hold the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, which many people presume they will trade for a king’s ransom or select a player on defense to rebuild that side of the ball. While they have said the plan is to keep Fields and build the roster around him, things could change between now and the draft.
Fields was inherited from the last regime, so it wouldn’t be the craziest thing if some people within the organization wanted to trade him. General manager Ryan Poles and head coach Matt Eberflus could fall in love with one of the top prospects in this year’s draft class and opt to select one of them.
If that occurs, Licht and the Buccaneers’ front office needs to get on the phone and start making calls. Fields would improve the long-term outlook of this franchise as he enters Year 3 in the NFL. He is coming off a sophomore season in which he made major strides.
In Tampa Bay, Fields would have a massive improvement in the skill position groups around him as the Buccaneers have two No. 1 receivers in Michael Evans and Chris Godwin. It would be nice to see what the Ohio State product could accomplish with top-level talent around him.
With a better supporting cast in every facet of the game around him, Fields should be able to take his game to another level in Tampa Bay. Given the weakness of the NFC South as a whole, the Buccaneers should still remain competitive even with Fields continuing his development under center.