Buccaneers QB Kyle Trask’s performance makes starting QB decision difficult

The young signal caller had a good night Saturday.

It was no secret that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers would be searching for a quarterback once future Hall of Famer Tom Brady retired. Once the team signed veteran quarterback Baker Mayfield during the offseason, it was almost all but certain the team found their next starter.

However, fast forward through training camp and two preseason games, the decision of naming a starting quarterback may not be so simple.

Kyle Trask has outperformed Mayfield by all accounts in camp. His ability to take care of the football is something head coach Todd Bowles often preaches the team needs to do. Mayfield, though, despite his frequent turnovers during camp practices performed well in his limited showing last week during their first preseason game against Pittsburgh. And while Trask’s was not one to write home about, he made up for it Saturday in New York against the Jets.

The third-year quarterback finished 20-for-28 for 218 yards, one touchdown, and a quarterback rating of 106.0.

Asked about Trask’s performance, Bowles liked what he saw.

“Poise. Poise in the pocket. A lot more athleticism – he used his legs when he had to and he was very successful at that,” Bowles said. “He threw the ball where he was supposed to throw it – he threw some pinpoint passes. He’d like to have a few plays back but overall, I saw a lot of poise and a lot of growth. I thought he did well.”

Tampa Bay is reportedly set to name Mayfield as the starter for the season. Bowles, however, stated he’s not set to name a starter and both Trask and Mayfield will play during the team’s preseason finale against the Ravens.

To make things interesting, during the broadcast Saturday night on WFLA, a question was asked on who should be the Buccaneers starter. Trask won the poll as 54-percent would like to see him as the starting quarterback of the Buccaneers.

With just one week left in the preseason, Tampa Bay will be preparing for not just finalizing the starting quarterback role, but also finalizing the test of the roster. Undoubtedly, though, there is much bigger intrigue on the former.