Kyle Trask Has Firm Grip On Bucs’ QB2 Role

It’s time for Scott Reynolds’ 2-Point Conversion post-game column, which features two statements, two questions and two predictions based on the latest Bucs game. Tampa Bay opened the 2025 preseason with a resounding, 29-7 win over the visiting Tennessee Titans on Saturday night. Quarterback Kyle Trask looked poised and got the Bucs out to an early 10-0 lead before Tampa Bay’s ground game took over. Meanwhile, head coach Todd Bowles’ defense recorded three interceptions and won the turnover battle.

2 BIG STATEMENTS

STATEMENT 1. Kyle Trask Has Firm Grip On Bucs’ QB2 Role

You’ve got it all wrong.

You think the Bucs brought in veteran quarterback Teddy Bridgewater because the team doesn’t have faith in Kyle Trask. You think there is going to be a legitimate battle for the role of Baker Mayfield’s backup between Trask and Bridgewater.

You’re not paying attention.

Trask is – and will be – the No. 2 quarterback this season. Trask’s performance on Saturday night in the Bucs’ 29-7 win over the Titans proved that.

Have you not heard head coach Todd Bowles praise Trask for years? Have you not heard general manager Jason Licht do the same thing? Licht has said before that just because Trask hasn’t done it, doesn’t mean he can’t do it – when referring to the former Florida Gator playing just a handful of snaps in regular season games over his first four years in Tampa Bay.

Behind a backup offensive line, handing off to backup running backs, and throwing to mostly backup wide receivers, Trask completed 12-of-16 passes for 129 yards while leading the Bucs on three scoring drives. His first two passes were downfield darts – a 25-yarder to Jalen McMillan and a 21-yarder to Emeka Egbuka, the team’s first-round pick. Trask’s best throw of the night came was undoubtedly when he went through his reads, hung in the pocket and found Ryan Miller across the middle of the field with a 21-yard laser just a second before getting drilled by a Titans defender.

“Those are the best moments as a quarterback, to be honest,” Trask said. “When you stand in there and get through your progression. That is when you get those big hits; when you are able to stand in there and the guys can open up for you down the field. Felt great – it was one of those where you throw it and you are like, ‘either the crowd is going to cheer or they are not,’ and if the other sideline starts cheering, that is terrible.

“It was one of those where the crowd started cheering and I was on the ground like, ‘Alright, that probably went well.’ I saw it open up and as I saw the window for it, I just let it rip.”

Trask has a firm grasp of the playbook as he enters his second season in this Liam Coen/Josh Grizzard scheme. He has a ton of chemistry with the team’s receivers, tight ends and running backs as he enters his fifth season in Tampa Bay.

Trask has a massive head start on Bridgewater, who has yet to truly practice with the team because he doesn’t know the playbook yet. The Bucs’ second-round pick will start the season as Mayfield’s backup and Bridgewater will likely start the year on the practice squad. Trask, who is coming off his best preseason last year with three touchdowns and one interception, will have two more opportunities in August to cement his position as QB2.

So why did the Bucs sign Bridgewater? Because the team’s Super Bowl window is open and Tampa Bay is two plays – an injury to Mayfield and an injury to Trask – away from having what should be a super season get absolutely derailed. The Bucs wouldn’t advance in the playoffs with Connor Bazelak under center, and Michael Pratt remains out with a back injury and is unable to practice.

Bridgewater is an insurance policy – and an experienced option to turn to if Trask were to falter if he was pressed into duty should Mayfield get injured. But imagine if Trask had Mike Evans to throw to, Bucky Irving to hand off to and the starting offensive line in to block for him. If Trask looks this good with the No. 2 unit, it’s fair to say that he might thrive playing with the starters.

The 49ers’ Super Bowl run ended in Philadelphia in the 2022 NFC Championship Game when rookie Brock Purdy, who was the third-string QB, suffered an injured elbow. San Francisco was out of quarterbacks as Trey Lance, Jimmy Garoppolo and Josh Johnson were all out due to injuries.

Remember, Shaun King was a rookie in 1999 – and Tampa Bay’s third-string quarterback – who had to play in the NFC Championship Game, an 11-6 loss at St. Louis, after Trent Dilfer and Eric Zeier were lost for the year due to injuries. King could only muster up two field goals as the Bucs suffered a crushing defeat despite a stellar performance by Monte Kiffin’s defense.

The Bucs did the right thing in bringing in more experienced option with Bridgewater to bolster the QB position. But that doesn’t mean the team is down on Trask at all.

Certainly not after Saturday night.

“I thought he played very well,” Bowles said. “He was 12-of-16, he made some timely throws down the field to Emeka and made one to J-Mac and he made another one. So, he did a very good job controlling the offense. He was poised in the pocket. As far as being a gamer, I need more evidence but he’s off to a good start this preseason. Practice wasn’t as sharp this last week, but he came in the game and he played well.”

STATEMENT 2. Josh Grizzard’s Debut As A Play-Caller Was A Resounding Success

New Bucs offensive coordinator Josh Grizzard had a very successful debut as a rookie play-caller. Calling plays from the field on Saturday night, he was able to get quarterback Kyle Trask into rhythm early in the passing game, leading the team to three scoring drives before halftime. And we saw the early vertical shots we expected to see with a 25-yard strike to Jalen McMillan on the first drive, followed by Trask’s 21-yard strike to Emeka Egbuka. Trask nearly hit Egbuka for a touchdown on third down with another pass over 20 yards, but the rookie couldn’t haul in the diving catch at the goal line.

After some early downfield shots, including a 21-yard dart from Trask to Ryan Miller, Grizzard leaned on the second-string offensive line, which started the game along with left tackle Charlie Heck. Backup running backs Sean Tucker and Owen Wright went on to pound the Titans into submission. Tampa Bay had a pair of Wright touchdowns called back due to holding calls and a few drives stalled inside the red zone. Wright still went on to find the endzone, and the Bucs racked up 348 yards in Grizzard’s debut and dominated the time of possession, 34:59 to 25:01.

Tampa Bay ran the ball 41 times for 178 yards and two touchdowns and passed for 170 yards. That’s about as balanced as you can get on offense. Wright led the Bucs with 87 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries (4.8 avg.), while Tucker ran for 50 yards and a score on 13 carries (3.8 avg.).

The Bucs’ starters are expected to make their preseason debut next week in Pittsburgh and it will be interesting to see how Grizzard grows as a play-caller throughout August.

2 PROBING QUESTIONS

STATEMENT 1. What Was The Best Aspect Of Tampa Bay’s Win?

Tight coverage. Todd Bowles has preached all offseason how he wants to see less cushion and tighter coverage from his Bucs’ secondary, especially his cornerbacks. That is what we’ve seen so far in training camp with a multitude of contested catches and some interceptions sprinkled in through the first three weeks.

Against Tennessee on Saturday the Bucs defenders carried over their play-making ways from the practice field to the stadium. Tampa Bay’s defense recorded 10 pass breakups and three interceptions, including a pick-six from undrafted cornerback Roman Parodie late in the game that put the exclamation point on the 29-7 victory.

Rookie nickelback Jacob Parrish finished with two pass breakups, as did backup nickel/safety J.J. Roberts, who nearly had an interception on one of those passes. On the other, he tipped a pass, which was intercepted by cornerback Tyrek Funderburk.

Rookie inside linebacker Nick Jackson also had a pass breakup, while fellow rookie inside ‘backer John Bullock had two deflections, including one on a blitz that led to Jackson’s interception. For a Bucs defense that recorded just seven interceptions – with only six from the secondary – over 18 games, including the playoff loss to Washington, seeing how tighter coverage can lead to big plays and takeaways was a great start to the 2025 season.

STATEMENT 2. What Was The Bucs’ Biggest Concern On Saturday Night?

Outside linebacker Chris Braswell. The Bucs felt the loss of rookie edge rusher David Walker last night. The team’s fourth-round pick suffered a torn ACL in training camp and is out for the year. Walker dazzled early on and was primed to beat out Braswell for the OLB3 role this year.  Tampa Bay expected him to break out this season the way Bucky Irving did last year as the team’s fourth-round pick.

Now all eyes are on Braswell, the 2024 second-round pick, who underwhelmed with just 1.5 sacks as a rookie. Braswell has been hyped up by the team this offseason, but he failed to impress on Saturday night in the preseason opener. Braswell started the game and played well into the third quarter and finished with three tackles. He failed to register a QB hit or hurry – let alone a sack – while facing Tennessee’s backup offensive tackles.

Yet Bowles didn’t seem disappointed in Braswell when I asked about him on Sunday morning.

“No disappointment at all,” Bowles said. “We thought he was very physical at the point of attack. He got off the ball and sometimes the ball was coming out quick. One or two of his rushes could be more speed-to-power, but everything else he did was good. We were pleased with his performance.”

Hmm. Not sure I fully buy that. Seemed like coach-speak to me, but I understand Bowles not wanting to say anything publicly that would hurt Braswell’s confidence.

Braswell has just started to work with new outside linebackers coach Larry Foote, who is a pass rush guru. So it’s too early to hit the panic button with two more preseason games to go. We’ll see if he makes some progress next week at Pittsburgh. What’s also worrisome is that neither Markees Watts nor Jose Ramirez showed much of a pass rush in the second half against the Titans.

If Braswell doesn’t show some signs of life in the preseason I wouldn’t be surprised if the Bucs ponder re-signing Shaq Barrett at some point. Granted, Barrett turns 33 later this year, but he does have a wealth of experience and knows how to get to the quarterback. The only question is if he can still do it at his age. If Braswell doesn’t come on as a pass rusher over the next few weeks, Tampa Bay might have to find out.

2 BOLD PREDICTIONS

PREDICTION 1. Nick Jackson Makes The 53-Man Roster

The Bucs have three aging linebackers in Lavonte David, Deion Jones and Anthony Walker Jr. around SirVocea Dennis, who enters his third season in Tampa Bay. While head coach Todd Bowles loves the experience in the linebacker room for this year, general manager Jason Licht knows the Bucs need to find another young linebacker to pair with Dennis for the long haul. The Bucs may have found that linebacker in Nick Jackson, an undrafted free agent out of Iowa.

Jackson, a five-year starter between Virginia and Iowa, racked up 555 tackles, 17 sacks and 19 pass breakups during his productive college career. On Saturday night against the Titans, he made two back-to-back splash plays, blitzing for the Bucs’ first sack of the night and then corralling the team’s first interception with a one-handed catch on a pass that was deflected at the line of scrimmage. Jackson also had a pass deflection and led the team with six tackles, including two tackles for loss.

Ideally, Tampa Bay would love to carry four linebackers and keep Jackson on the practice squad during his rookie year, but that might not be possible after his splashy NFL debut. Jackson has starred in practice during training camp, so his eruption on Saturday night didn’t surprise the team. Don’t be surprised if he forces his way on the 53-man roster – even if the team has to carry five inside linebackers this year.

“A football player from the time he came in here,” Bowles said. “He was somebody we wanted to see, we wanted to watch, and we were paying close attention to him. He just knows the game. He knows how to play the game. He’s very instinctive, he can read things, he’s physical when he needs to be physical and he knows how to cover. He did a very good job tonight.”

PREDICTION 2. Ryan Miller Wins Final WR Role On Depth Chart

With less than a month before the Bucs begin their 2025 season in Atlanta against the Falcons, wide receiver Chris Godwin has yet to do any straight-line running – let alone cutting – on his surgically-repaired ankle. Godwin seems like he’s weeks away – perhaps a month or so – from practicing with the team. So he’ll likely start the season on the PUP (physically unable to perform) list. With Mike Evans, Emeka Egbuka, Jalen McMillan and likely Tez Johnson making the team, the Bucs need another receiver or two to fill out the depth chart.

After Saturday’s 29-7 win over Tennessee, Ryan Miller appears to be staking claim to the final receiver role. Miller shined with a game-high six catches for 66 yards, including a 21-yard catch across the middle. Miller was a practice squad player last year who was elevated due to injuries at the position and caught two touchdowns. With Kameron Johnson and Trey Palmer missing time due to injury, and Dennis Houston suffering a groin injury on Saturday night, Miller built on a solid camp showing and took full advantage of his reps on Saturday night.

Miller’s main competition going forward will be undrafted free agent Garrett Greene, who had a 17-yard punt return and two catches for 22 yards. Who knows? Perhaps the Bucs keep both if Greene continues to shine in the punt return game.

“Ryan can play a lot of spots for us,” Bucs head coach Todd Bowles said. “He plays multiple positions, he’s very tough, he’s very reliable, and quarterbacks trust him.”