Breaking Down the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' Options at Quarterback Heading into 2015

One thing the Tampa Bay Buccaneers know for sure? They won’t have the same quarterback at the helm who took the majority of snaps in 2014.

What’s not certain at this point is who will be replacing Josh McCown, who was released over a week ago.

Sitting atop the 2015 NFL draft, the Bucs have their pick of the litter at every position but with a need for a quarterback of the future and multiple options sitting in front of them, it’s extremely likely they’ll be using the top pick at the game’s most important position.

But who will it be? The more pro-ready pocket passer with off-field issues, or one of the Pac 12’s spread-offense playmakers? Will the Buc spurn most media projections and stick with Mike Glennon moving forward?

Let’s take a look at the potential scenarios for the Bucs’ quarterback situation in 2015.

Draft Jameis Winston

After hearing general manager Jason Licht and head coach Lovie Smith speak with the media at the combine this week, many believe this is the direction the Bucs are leaning with the top overall pick.

Winston’s off-field concerns have been well-documented, but Smith made it clear the team won’t be dismissing Winston as a potential selection because of such incidents, according to Roy Cummings of The Tampa Tribune:

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I mean, they’re bad decisions and he’s been drug across the mud for them. They’re following him. And that’s what should happen, because bad decisions, they’re going to stay with you the rest of your life.

And he needs to stand up now and know that we can’t have our guys doing that. And I assume he’s going to say that he was dumb and stupid to have done that. But to write somebody off based on that, it’s got to be a little more than that do that.

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Having played in a more pro-style offense in college, Winston is more prepared to step in immediately and be effective on the field at the next level. NFL teams can’t afford to be as patient as they used to when it comes to developing quarterbacks, especially ones drafted with the No. 1 overall pick.

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Many will point to the possibility that everything being said by the Bucs’ decision-makers could be nothing more than a smoke-screen, but other than attempting to drive up the price of a potential trade, there’s no reason for the team holding the top pick to posture in that way.

This seems like the most likely scenario at this point, with Mike Glennon either returning as the backup in 2015 or being traded during the draft and replaced by a veteran free agent. If Winston is the pick, he’s likely the starter as soon as he gets in the building.

Draft Marcus Mariota

The Bucs may seem like they’re leaning toward Winston, but it’s still far too early to count out Mariota when it comes to their plans at quarterback.

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Smith highlighted some of Mariota’s strengths, while warning that Mariota can’t be blamed for the offensive system in which he had so much success at Oregon, according to Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times:

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He's big, he's strong, he's got a strong arm, he can make all of the throws that a quarterback has to make. We've seen him make those throws. He's athletic, he can buy time with his feet. The amount of interceptions he's thrown, I know a lot of the passes he's thrown are screens. But you can't blame him for the system. That's where he is, and they won a lot of games with that system. But a part of that system is throwing the ball, also.

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The failure of past Oregon quarterbacks to succeed at the next level, despite racking up gaudy stats in college, is one of the biggest concerns when projecting Mariota’s potential pro success. He’s a better pocket passer than many give him credit for, but it’s likely he’ll face a steeper learning curve moving to a more pro-style system than Winston.

After going 2-14 in their first season running the show, can Smith and Licht afford to wait on Mariota to develop? Glennon would likely remain as a bridge to the future with Mariota, but that might not sit well with fans who want to see the future starting in Week 1.

Draft Brett Hundley

One possible scenario that shouldn’t be completely dismissed yet is Tampa Bay opting to throw their needs out the window, choosing instead the best overall player at the top of the draft, which many agree is USC defensive lineman Leonard Williams.

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If that were to happen, UCLA’s Brett Hundley could be the Bucs’ target at the top of the second round. Like Mariota, Hundley’s college experience was in more of a spread offense, so he’ll also require a little more time to acclimate to the pro game, but he’s a fantastic athlete with adequate size and arm strength to get the job done.

Hundley said his penchant for taking off from the pocket was all about what was required of him in UCLA’s offense, but that he’s capable of winning from the pocket, per Chris Burke of SI.com:

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If the time needs be where I need to sit in the pocket and make all the throws, I'll do that. Sometimes in our offense, the situation dictated where if I didn't see something, I'm taking off running. If that is the offense and that is what I need to do ... you can watch tape, there's times where I sat in the pocket, I made throws and I felt like I did that consistently.

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Again, Glennon would likely be the starter in the short term in this scenario, giving Hundley the time to digest a more pro-style offense.

The prospect of pairing the disruptive Williams with All-Pro Gerald McCoy in the middle of the defense might be too much for the Bucs to pass up. If that ends up being the case, don’t write off Hundley as the Bucs' potential franchise quarterback of the future.

Start Mike Glennon

This option is probably the least popular among Bucs fans but some will point to a struggling offensive line as one of the biggest reasons Glennon wasn’t able to perform as well as he’s capable of in 2014.

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For their part, Licht and Smith made it clear earlier this week that the third-year pro is still very much a part of their plans at quarterback, but it remains to be seen if those plans involve him being the starter moving forward. Licht said they want Glennon to “be a part of the future”, while Smith said it should say plenty that Glennon is the only quarterback currently on the roster, per Pat Yasinskas of ESPN.com:

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So where does that put Mike? Mike’s the only quarterback that we have that’s played on our roster. That should tell you an awful lot. We have a new staff also coming in. I let offensive coordinator] Dirk [Koetter] and [quarterbacks coach] Mike Bajakian look at our quarterbacks and see what they thought. We all feel comfortable right now with Mike being on our roster and being our quarterback.

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In 19 starts over his first two NFL seasons, Glennon has put up respectable numbers—especially for a third-round pick—throwing for just over 4,000 yards with 29 touchdowns and 15 interceptions.

It’s conceivable that Tampa Bay could decide that Glennon still has what it takes to be the team’s franchise quarterback, freeing them up to use the No. 1 overall pick to continue building a strong supporting cast around him on both sides of the ball.

Luke Easterling is a Featured Columnist covering the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and NFL Draft for Bleacher Report. He is also a Senior NFL Draft Analyst for Draft Breakdown. Follow him on Twitter @LukeEasterling.