Draft 1

After reading several Op-eds about the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and their current starting QB controversy, I realized that the tones are often heated because everyone has such strong opinions on the issue. When it comes to sports, especially football, people really get immersed into issues and they always have very strong feelings one way or another regarding them. I fit this description, and that is why I have such strong feelings as to who should be starting at Quarterback for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The current question: Is Luke McCown ready to the Bucs’ franchise Quarterback of the future? My answer is a resounding No.
I have worked with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for two summers as I was a Training Camp Assistant in 2005 and 2006. I got to witness Luke McCown first hand and I never thought he was going to be the Bucs Quarterback of the future as he never really impressed me in camp. That was a few years ago, but obviously things have not changed because last year was a year that the Bucs struggled at the Quarterback position and Luke McCown was not even a thought. This is clearly evident by the fact that when the Bucs were struggling to find a Quarterback who could win they opted for Brian Griese and Jeff Garcia. Luke threw only three passes all of last year when the Quarterback position was one of controversy and lack of production. How could a guy who threw only three passes all year for a team with two lousy unproductive Quarterback really be the best choice for a team that wants to compete the next year.
For a player who has been with the Bucs’ for five seasons, and has yet to become the starter, there must be a reason for it. The reason as to why he has not become the starter yet is obvious: he is just not that good and that is also why he only threw three passes all year. Yes, there are some advantages to having someone start who has been the backup for a couple years as he knows the system better than anyone else, but this is not necessarily a good reason. It is not a good reason because Luke knows the old system the best. He knows the system that John Gruden implemented for the last seven years, but now there is a new coach in Raheem Morris. This means that there will be a new system. This therefore would be a perfect opportunity for a new player to come in and start fresh because everyone will be learning the new system, and therefore Luke would have little advantage over anybody else.
So who should the Bucs get to start at Quarterback? The Bucs will certainly try to acquire someone as they already tried and failed in obtaining Matt Cassell from New England who ended up in Kansas and Jay Cutler who ended up in Chicago. These attempts were similar to the attempt to get Brett Favre last year from the Packers as he ultimately ended up in New York. These highly publicized attempts to land these free agent giants is a clear indication that the Bucs’ have little to no faith in Luke McCown as the Quarterback of the future. If they are to not make a blockbuster trade before the season starts to acquire a new quarterback, it is clear that they will obtain one through a different means: the 2009 NFL Draft. According to Mel Kiper Jr. who has been the authority on the NFL draft for more than the last decade, the Bucs’ are going to gear up for the future by drafting Josh Freeman with the 19th overall pick in the 2009 NFL draft. Yes, this may enable Luke McCown to start the season at Quarterback, but when he begins to struggle which he most certainly will, Freeman will be waiting in the wings to become the Bucs Quarterback for years to come. Josh Freeman, being a rookie, will most likely sit behind McCown for most of the season, but he will get his opportunities when McCown struggles. He may not necessarily be the answer to the Bucs’ quarterback issue immediately, but he is definitely going to be the long term solution where Luke McCown certainly is not.

Authors Note:

I still am a little nervous that this is too similar to my letter to the editor. This is definitely only the rough draft and I know that I have a lot of things to add and edit. I feel that this may be a little choppy and I need to make it flow together better and get all my arguments organized in a better manner. I think that I have good ideas, but I really just need to make everything come together a little smoother!