Bruce Arians Comments on QB Competition Between Kyle Trask and Baker Mayfield
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are staying open as the franchise inches closer and closer to a 2023 season where the team will have a new starting quarterback. The Buccaneers entered the offseason with just one signal-caller under contract, former second-round pick Kyle Trask. It didn't take long for the team to add a new face to the room when it signed veteran Baker Mayfield to a one-year deal in March.
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Barring another shakeup in the quarterback room during the upcoming NFL Draft, it seems like Mayfield and Trask are the top two competitors to replace the retired Tom Brady. One player has yet to get an opportunity at the professional level while the other has proven himself but has had his fair share of struggles as of late.
Whoever rises to the occasion could very well decide whether Tampa Bay will be back in the playoffs or sitting on the couch at the end of the year. While speaking to the media at the Arians Family Foundation Golf Classic, former Buccaneers head coach and current senior football consultant Bruce Arians believes that the competition will bring out the best in both players.
"There's no doubt," Arians said. "It's a huge opportunity for him [Baker Mayfield, it's a huge opportunity for Kyle. We're going to get the best out of both of them, you know?"
Mayfield has the edge in experience and that could prove paramount in the battle for the starting job. He spent his first four years with the Cleveland Browns, completing 1185/1924 of his passes (61.6%) for 14,125 passing yards with 92 touchdowns to 56 interceptions. He added five more scores on the ground. That included a 2020 campaign where he tossed 26 touchdowns to eight interceptions.
The former Oklahoma star was traded to Carolina over the summer and was released after struggling between the lines. Mayfield landed with the Los Angeles Rams to conclude the 2022 season. Over four games, he completed 63.6% of his passes for 850 passing yards with four touchdowns to two interceptions. He led the Rams to a 98-yard game-winning drive against the Las Vegas Raiders in the final two minutes, finishing off an epic comeback.
Trask spent the majority of his first two seasons as the No. 3 quarterback behind Brady and veteran Blaine Gabbert. He made his NFL debut against the Atlanta Falcons in the regular-season finale, completing 3/9 passes for 23 yards. Though he hasn't done much at the professional level, Trask threw for 4,283 yards and 43 touchdowns in 2020 while playing for the Florida Gators.
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