Jameis Winston last year became the first quarterback with a 30-30 season, meaning he threw 30+ touchdowns as well as 30+ interceptions. Head coach Bruce Arians is known as a quarterback whisperer due to his time with QBs such as Peyton Manning, Ben Roethlisberger, Andrew Luck, and Carson Palmer.
But Jameis Winston is a free agent this yaer. Does Arians want to continue to work with a guy who's shown year after year that he can't cut down the turnovers? Why would he?
And we can forget about the Bucs bringing in Philip Rivers. Rivers is just an older, slightly more successful version of Jameis Winston who could cost just as much, if not more to sign.
So who's out there for the Bucs?
I give you...Teddy Bridgewater.
Bridgewater spent the first part of his career with the Vikings where in his second year, led the Vikings to the playoffs and was a missed field goal away from advancing past the first round. It was during that next year's offseason practice that he tore his ACL and dislocated his knee, causing him to miss an entire year and then just throwing two passes the year after that.
Since then, Bridgewater has spent the last two seasons backing up Drew Brees in New Orleans. When Brees missed five games with a thumb injury this past season, Bridgewater led the Saints to a 5-0 record, throwing for nearly 1,400 yards, 9 touchdowns, and completing 68% of his passes.
Now a free agent and a proven starter, he will likely get a deal somewhere to at least compete for a starting job. Why not Tampa?
He is only two years older than Jameis Winston and 10 years younger than Philip Rivers. He is not the turnover machine that the other two are and will cost significantly less. Thanks to our friends at Spotrac.com, Bridgewater's market value is $20 million while Winston's is $27 million and Rivers' market value is roughly $24 million. Mike Ginnitti explained on "In The Zone" that a bidding war could cause Rivers' contract number to reach $30 million (per year).
Now Teddy Bridgewater won't solve all the offensive woes for the Bucs, but he won't put the defense in a tough spot the way Winston has done throughout his time in Tampa. Signing Bridgewater will also give Tampa a clear objective in the draft which is to find a running back. The best defense is a good run game and controlling the time of possession.
Teddy Bridgewater can manage the game, costs much less than Jameis Winston or Philip Rivers, and is a guy you don't have to worry about off the field.
What are you waiting for Tampa? Teddy Bridgewater is your guy!