Should The Tampa Bay Buccaneers Fear Playing Jacksonville Jaguars Backup Quarterback?
When would someone prefer the Tampa Bay Buccaneers face starting Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence instead of backup C.J. Beathard? When that person is a Bucs fan who has seen their favorite team defeated by backup quarterbacks too many times to make that a point of confidence in any matchup.
So, with the Jaguars potentially - even likely - having to field Beathard instead of Lawrence against the Buccaneers this weekend, not everyone is as celebratory over the idea. Even though Beathard has never actually played against the franchise in his five previous seasons playing in the NFL.
In fact, Beathard hasn't ever stepped on the field against Tampa Bay or coach Todd Bowles.
Really, the concern about the Buccaneers facing Jacksonville's backup quarterback appears to live in the realm of superstition. But even the most superstitious beliefs can be rooted in some fact, so we decided to dive into this backup curse many believe has been plaguing the franchise.
San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy (13) celebrates after scoring a touchdown against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the second quarter at Levi's Stadium.
Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
By our count, in the 10 seasons before this one, the Bucs played in 31 games where a quarterback that would be considered a backup either by stature or by season-opening status.
The list of quarterbacks faced includes guys like Austin Davis who started in Week 2 of the 2014 season for the St. Louis Rams after replacing Shaun Hill who was the Week 1 starter and led his team to a 19-17 win over Tampa Bay.
Brock Purdy of the San Francisco 49ers also makes the list because he was far from the team's starter at the beginning of 2022 and led his squad to the biggest margin of victory here with a 35-7 win over the Buccaneers last December.
The Bucs are 12-19 in the past decades when facing starting backup quarterbacks, only reinforcing the mood around the team that dreads the moment a starter is forced to the bench for a contest against this franchise.
Since coach Todd Bowles' arrival in 2020, the Bucs faced backup quarterbacks starting against them 11 times. His teams are 5-6 in those.
This season, Tampa Bay has added two more backup starters to the list, with games against Garnder Minshew and the Indianapolis Colts and Will Levis and the Tennessee Titans.
The Buccaneers split those two, and are 1-1 this year against backup starting quarterbacks.
Barring injuries to New Orleans Saints starter Derek Carr and Carolina Panthers rookie Bryce Young, this weekend's matchup against another could be the classic 'rubber match' which will determine if Bowles' team is successful or not against these pesky unsung quarterbacks.
The outcome will have further influence over the amount of terror fans may experience the next time an opposing starting quarterback is expected to miss their game against Tampa Bay.
Stick with BucsGameday and the Locked On Bucs podcast for more coverage of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers throughout the 2023 season.
