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Assessing the Quarterback Position

Two things to start off with, 1) I am not a fan of Mike Glennon, 2) This is regarding the 2014 season. As I see it there are four options for the Bucs to pursue this season.

Option 1: Stick behind Mike Glennon

If the Bucs stick behind Mike Glennon, I can only see two real reasons as to why this would happen. The first is that this staff believes in Glennon and sees something that I don't. The other is that the guy they really want isn't available until next year whether that be in the 2015 draft, free agency, or if they draft a guy who needs a year to develop. One of those options that would be available in the draft is Brett Hundley out of UCLA. A guy that could be available in free agency in 2015 is Ryan Mallett. As for a developmental quarterback, taking a guy in the later rounds of the draft who has a high ceiling could be an option.

Option 2: The draft

This years draft has a good amount of quarterback projected to be drafted in the first round. The talent in this draft has taken a hit with both Mariota and Hundley returning to school, but still guys like Teddy Bridgewater, Blake Bortles, Johnny Manziel, and Derek Carr are expected to be taken in the first 10 or so picks. There are some more options available in the second round who could be good options for the Bucs. Guys like Brett Smith, AJ McCarron, Tajh Boyd, and David Fales. Another name often thrown around on here is Aaron Murray.

Option 3: Free agency

This years free agency pool took a significant hit when Jay Cutler was resigned to a ridiculous contract. Despite his resigning, other quarterbacks are still set to hit the market. Some of those are Josh McCown, Chad Henne, Josh Freeman, Brady Quinn, Matt Flynn, Matt Cassell, and Michael Vick. None of those options really bring anything special, so this is probably the worst of the four options. The only interesting guys for me are Josh McCown and Josh Freeman, but with recent news that McCown is likely to retire and with the unlikely return of Josh Freeman, I don't see any starter potential in the free agency market.

Option 4: Trade

There aren't many teams out there that are willing to trade away a franchise quarterback, so it is more likely to get a backup to a franchise quarterback. Imagine if the Bucs had gotten Nick Foles. Some of the guys out there are Ryan Mallett, Brock Osweiller, Kirk Cousins, potentially Robert Griffin III, Brian Hoyer, Case Keenum, Matt McGloin/Terrelle Pryor, Colt McCoy, Matt Moore, and Tyrod Taylor. Some of these guys aren't that great. Some of them aren't better than Mike Glennon. Out of those backups the ones I like are: Mallett, Cousins, Hoyer, Moore, and Taylor. Mallett and Cousins would probably come at the price of a second round pick and maybe some change. Hoyer and Moore aren't the greatest but Hoyer did show flashes of potential before forgetting how to properly slide. Taylor on the other hand is very dynamic and even got five or so plays a game this year just for that dynamic play ability. Some of you may remember him burning the Bucs for a stat line of 13/23 154 yards 2 TDs and 2 rushes for 27 yards this preseason.

What's best for the Bucs:

Option 3 seems like the worst of them all. The market is pretty dry at quarterback and it is unlikely that any franchise quarterbacks will be released. Option 1 could lead to another terrible offensive season unless major improvement is made by Glennon. Option 2 is probably the most future savvy. As long as they aren't trading to draft a quarterback, the draft can be very inexpensive and with the new CBA, abandoning ship on a quarterback isn't too hard to do. Option 4 is the next most interesting. Trading for a quarterback could be a good option for getting a young franchise quarterback.

What I want:

Either option 2 or option 4. I favor getting a backup over reaching for a guy that may not even be that great. I would like for the Bucs to put out feelers on Mallett, Cousins, and Taylor. Mallett and Cousins would come at a high price. Likely a 2nd round pick and probably a future pick based on performance. Taylor would probably be worth a mid to late round pick. Mallett and Cousins bring the more traditional quarterback style and can toss the ball around pretty well. Mallett hasn't done much in his NFL career though, but he did do pretty well in the preseason this year. Cousins did okay in his performances this season with some up and down performances. Taylor could bring a newer NFL era style. All of these guys could bust, but all of them could also boom.

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