Buccaneers Are Favorites to Land 4-Time Pro Bowl Quarterback, Says Insider

NFL Trade Rumors

Getty Former head coach Bruce Arians is now part of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers front office.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are in the beginning stages of finding a post-Tom Brady quarterback, but there is a growing buzz the team could land Las Vegas Raiders signal-caller Derek Carr. Yahoo Sports’ Charles Robinson noted that the chatter in Mobile, Ala. during Senior Bowl week is that the Bucs make the most sense as Carr seeks a fresh start.

The Raiders have until February 15 to find a trade partner for Carr before his salary becomes fully guaranteed. The three remaining seasons on Carr’s $121 million contract makes it increasingly likely that the Raiders will ultimately release the veteran, which means Tampa Bay could try to sign the Pro Bowler in free agency.

“So, the buzz here at the Senior Bowl, I’m in Mobile, Ala. by the way, the buzz is connecting them [Bucs] with Derek Carr,” Robinson noted during a February 1, 2023 episode of “You Pod to Win the Game.” “Like, that’s probably the Derek Carr destination. I only believe that if the Bucs are like, ‘Let’s not reboot completely. Let’s not just nuke it right now and start all over again. Let’s see if we can maybe put this back together again.'”


Derek Carr Is More Likely to Be Released Than Traded

Carr was just named to his fourth Pro Bowl which is more of a product of the lack of interest in the festivities versus stellar play from the quarterback. Yet, the veteran signal-caller is just one season removed from a stellar 2021 campaign where Carr threw for 4,804 yards, 23 touchdowns and 14 interceptions while completing 68.4% of his passes during 17 starts. Carr put up more modest numbers this season throwing for 3,522 yards, 24 touchdowns and 14 interceptions while completing 60.8% of his passes in 15 appearances.

NFL Network’s Jim Trotter reported that there is a “less than 1%” chance that the Raiders are able to trade Carr. This means the Bucs will likely be competing with other teams to sign the Pro Bowl quarterback. Regardless, Tampa Bay will need to get creative with Carr’s contract given the team is projected to be more than $55 million over the cap.

“A source says that the Raiders trading away QB Derek Carr is “less than 1%”, according to @JimTrotter_NFL,” Dov Kleiman tweeted on February 3. “Another source said that the only way to even reach tht 1% chance is if the Raiders add ‘Hunter Renfrew and Darren Waller to the deal,’ according to
@MikeGarafolo.”


The Buccaneers May Prefer to Add a Veteran QB Given the Team’s Win-Now Roster

The cheapest route for the Bucs to go is to draft a quarterback who can compete with Kyle Trask (and potentially Blaine Gabbert if the veteran is re-signed) to be the QB1 for 2023. The challenge is the Buccaneers built a win-now roster around Brady, and the team may be inclined to see if a veteran quarterback can keep the franchise in contention.

“Look, I think if you’re Todd Bowles, you’re sitting there going, I don’t know if I survive a reboot,” Robinson added. “Any coach in that position is sitting there going I gotta keep trying to win now. I don’t want to do a roboot, because I won’t make it and that will potentially be my last head job in the NFL.”