Arians Open to Tampa Bay Buccaneers Drafting a QB, Perhaps in First Round
With Tom Brady behind center, Tampa Bay has little to worry about at the quarterback position right now.
However, fresh off of a Super Bowl victory and without pressing needs across the roster, the Buccaneers are in a position to find an heir to the 43-year-old if the value is right in the upcoming NFL Draft.
"This year, going into this draft is probably going to be the best player available, I mean every round, you know?" Arians claimed on Tuesday, discussing the upcoming draft. "Can't really say I've ever gone into a draft not having a need, you know? A drastic need. But, so it's going to be fun because there's going to be so many guys available."
Applying the best player available logic to one position specifically, Arians was asked about the idea of selecting a quarterback to groom behind Brady. His backups from a year ago, Blaine Gabbert and Ryan Griffin, remain on the free-agent market at this time. The team has expressed an interest in re-signing Gabbert, however.
"I think, yeah, we go into that every year, you know? If the guy is there at the right time and we really think has a great future, and no better time than to have one sit for a couple years and learn from those two guys," Arians said, with the idea of Gabbert returning in mind. "It'll be, each round there's going to be one of those guys in that picture to try to see who is the best available right then."
Odds are, the top signal-callers in the class will be long gone by the time the Buccaneers are on the clock in the first round. Five quarterback prospects: Clemson's Trevor Lawrence, BYU's Zach Wilson, Ohio State's Justin Fields, North Dakota State's Trey Lance, and Alabama's Mac Jones have frequently been slotted as top-ten picks.
If for some reason one of those five quarterbacks fell into the Buccaneers' lap at No. 32 - one might wonder if the Bucs would consider a trade-up for the correct value, even - Tampa Bay owns a strong enough roster to confidently select a passer that the coaching staff believes it can develop into a successful replacement for Brady when that time comes.
"Like I said, if the right guy is there that we think is a developmental guy that has the upside that outweighs every other position of those five or six guys that we're looking at, then yeah, I wouldn't be against it," Arians proclaimed about a first-round QB.
"Same thing in the second round and the third round," he continued. "If we have five guys and one's a quarterback and we think his development is better than those positions, sure."
Although there is a drop-off from the top five, the Bucs could also look to Florida's Kyle Trask, Texas A&M's Kellen Mond, Wake Forest's Jamie Newman, and others as viable day two quarterbacks to sit and learn behind the greatest of all-time at the position.
Of course, adding depth on both the offensive and defensive line, speed at receiver, or some hands at running back might be bigger needs for the Buccaneers right now. But with all 22 starters from their offense and defense returning after a Super Bowl run, Tampa Bay can afford to make some luxurious selections in the upcoming draft.
Identifying a quarterback of the future and pairing him with Tom Brady sure would be a luxury.
