There’s something to be said for continuity in the NFL — in making sure they’re “keeping the band together” so to speak.
Sometimes, though, it’s OK to look for an obvious upgrade where it’s needed.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers missed a big opportunity to upgrade at the backup quarterback position by re-signing veteran Kyle Trask to a 1-year, $2.78 million contract on March 12.
Trask, a 2021 second round pick (No. 64 overall), has been Tampa Bay’s backup the last 4 seasons — the first 2 seasons under Tom Brady and the last 2 seasons under Baker Mayfield, with the 2 quarterbacks making the Pro Bowl 3 out of the 4 seasons.
“General manager Jason Licht selected Trask hoping he would be the heir apparent to Tom Brady,” Pewter Report’s Josh Quiepo wrote on March 12. “Following Brady’s retirement in 2023, the team brought in Baker Mayfield to compete with Trask for the starting quarterback position. Mayfield won the battle, and Trask remained the primary backup.”
It’s a slight raise for Trask, who just played out the 4-year, $5.53 million rookie contract he signed after he was drafted in 2021.
Trask Has Done Little to Inspire Confidence
Trask’s inability to convince the Buccaneers he was the best option after Brady’s retirement was perhaps the most telling thing that’s happened in his NFL career — Tampa Bay instead chose Mayfield to come play on a 1-year, $3 million “prove it” deal in 2023 that he turned into a 3-year, $100 million contract before the 2024 season.
Before the 2024 season, Bleacher Report’s Maurice Moton ranked Trask 30th out of all 32 backups, ahead of only Clayton Tune of the Arizona Cardinals and Stetson Bennett of the Los Angeles Rams.
“Most of the quarterbacks in the lowest tier have had rough career starts with poor performances,” Moton wrote in his August 29 story, pointing out that Trask has “minimal regular season experience.”
Trask was was named All-SEC for Florida in 2020 after he threw for career highs of 4,328 yards, 43 touchdowns and just 8 interceptions. In the NFL, Trask has played in only 4 games with zero starts, zero touchdowns and zero interceptions on 4-of-11 passing for 28 yards.
Buccaneers Could Still Take QB in NFL Draft
Because the contract for Trask is so minimal and because third-string quarterback Michael Pratt has no guarantee of a roster spot, there’s still a chance the Buccaneers could take another backup quarterback in the later rounds of the 2025 NFL draft.
One candidate could be Louisville’s Tyler Shough, who played 7 seasons at 3 different Power Four schools and will turn 26 years old in September. Shough had his best college season in 2024 with the Cardinals, throwing for 3,195 yards, 23 touchdowns and 6 interceptions in 12 games while completing 62.7 percent of his passes.
Bleacher Report’s Brent Sobleski put Shough on his list of the most underrated NFL prospects headed into the NFL Scouting Combine.
“He’s a 6’5″, 224-pound prospect, with the mobility to show he can create some space outside of structure,” Sobleski wrote on February 24. “More importantly, he has significant natural arm talent. He can make all of the throws … Furthermore, his extensive experience moving between programs can prove to be beneficial in the eyes of talent evaluators.”
