Tampa Bay Buccaneers' Season May Hinge on Result of QB Competition

Of all the position battles in football, none have shown the ability to bring a team together or tear a team apart like a quarterback controversy.

Unfortunately this summer in Tampa, the Buccaneers will have to choose one quarterback from a group of five.

But wait, this doesn’t mean that the Bucs are in a horrible situation. This training camp competition is unlikely to tear the team apart as there is no returning veteran starter to cause problems.

Luke McCown, Byron Leftwich, Josh Freeman, Josh Johnson, and Brian Griese will each take repetitions with the offense to decide who will lead the Buccaneers onto the field this fall.

“One bone, five dogs,” said head coach Raheem Morris. “Let the best man win.”

With all due respect to coach Morris, his quote would more accurately represent the situation if he said: “One bone, three dogs, two of you will be holding a clipboard as soon as our first round pick is ready.”

To better understand the competition and get a good idea who should have the early lead, let us take a closer look at each of the quarterbacks.

Josh Johnson

Drafted in the fifth round of the 2008 NFL Draft, Johnson was the “Quarterback of the Future” that former head coach Jon Gruden waited to long to acquire.

Coming out of San Diego, Johnson impressed NFL scouts with his athleticism and work ethic. However, there were questions about his arm strength and delivery.

Johnson is a tall, skinny quarterback who played well in mop-up duty during the preseason last year. He completed 10 of 15 passes in limited time, including a 29-yard strike that impressed the coaching staff at the time.

Unfortunately, Johnson found himself at the back end of a log jam of veteran quarterbacks in Tampa at the end of the preseason, and he was relegated to the practice squad.

Johnson will find himself at the back end of a log jam again this season unless his work ethic can make up for the gaps in development between himself and the rest of the quarterbacks on the roster.

Brian Griese

Griese, a 12-year veteran who rejoined the Bucs last year after a two-year stint in Chicago, is a fine locker room presence at this point in his career.

He has taken several steps backward since his 20-touchdown, 70-percent completion performance in 2004, his first year with the Buccaneers.

Last year, Griese appeared in five games, throwing more interceptions than touchdowns while struggling to a 69.4 QB rating.

Griese really does not have a role on the Bucs’ roster this year. Look for him to be cut, possibly as soon as June 1, to give him time to look for a backup role on a contender.

Luke McCown

McCown believed that he was the heir apparent to the starting quarterback position when Jeff Garcia was let go in the offseason, but he has watched the team bring in veteran Byron Leftwich and first round draft pick Josh Freeman since.

This is where the competition gets interesting because McCown should get every opportunity to earn that starting role.

He has a strong arm and a quick delivery, and he showed flashes of solid play in 2007, his first season with the Buccaneers.

That season, in five games, McCown completed 67 percent of his passes for five touchdowns and rushed for nearly 10 yards per carry in limited attempts.

However, while McCown has shown, at times, the physical tools to be a starter in the NFL, he has not produced results. He has compiled a 1-6 record as a starter in his career.

To be fair, four of those starts did come in his rookie year with the 2004 Cleveland Browns, who were 4-12 that season and had the 27th-ranked offense.

If McCown can demonstrate that his skills can translate into wins in the fall, he can certainly win the starting position.

Josh Freeman

At 6’6” and 250 pounds, Freeman is a physical specimen. He has a strong arm and is very mobile.

However, Freeman should not be confused with Michael Vick or Tarvaris Jackson.

Freeman is very comfortable in the pocket and can accentuate his game with the run if needed, but he will be at his best when he uses his mobility to avoid pressure and deliver a strong pass.

Many of the running plays that were designed for Freeman at Kansas State, were done because he was the best athlete on the team.

His low completion percentage and high interception rate in college—which got better through the years—can be attributed to a lack of talent in his supporting cast with the Wildcats.

That being said, given the low success rate of first-year starters and Freeman’s early entry into the draft, the Buccaneers would benefit from letting Freeman take one year on the sidelines learning how to be an NFL quarterback.

Unless injuries to Bucs quarterbacks hasten his debut, Freeman should lead this team for at least a few years to come beginning in the 2010 season.

Byron Leftwich

The third of the trio of quarterbacks with a legitimate shot at the starting role in Tampa this year, Byron Leftwich brings the most winning experience in the NFL.

A former first-round pick, Leftwich lost his starting position in Jacksonville to David Garrard and recurring ankle injuries, despite an 89.3 QB rating and a 3:1 TD to INT ratio in 2005, his last season as a starter.

Leftwich was never a mobile quarterback, but he became a sitting duck in the pocket behind offensive lines that were getting older (Jacksonville) and much worse (Atlanta).

This season, Leftwich should benefit from starting behind the best line he has played with since 2005, not to mention a very strong running attack with the combination of Derek Ward, Ernest Graham, and Carnell Williams behind him.

Leftwich has also had a season to get healthier, hungrier, and more experienced while backing up Ben Roethlisberger and winning a Super Bowl in Pittsburgh last year.

That is a feat that no other quarterback on this roster—not named Brian Griese and not being shown the door—can claim.

A season of transition

While they wait for Josh Freeman to develop into a starting quarterback, the Buccaneers must rely on a solid rushing offense and a conservative passing attack.

This season Luke McCown or Byron Leftwich will lead this team onto the field.

To avoid a down or rebuilding season, either one of these quarterbacks must be able to cull their skills and maintain a consistent effort throughout the season.

There is no controversy as to whom will be the starting quarterback next season, but to avoid ripping this team apart, one quarterback will have to become a reliable NFL starter this year.