Tom Brady plans to play at least another year in Tampa Bay and, based on his comments from the week of the Super Bowl, maybe more. One day – probably in this decade – however, the Buccaneers will need to name a successor to the greatest defender of all time.
Bucs general manager Jason Licht believes that Blaine Gabbert, Brady’s reserve in 2020, could be a candidate to take on TB12 eventually.
“First of all, I love his energy,” said Licht, via Pewter Report’s Taylor Jenkins. “I really got close to Blaine this year just for being backstage. He’s a very smart guy, but he’s a guy, my scouts and I talked about it a lot, he’s just a guy that I love to watch playing every day in practice, because he has a cannon. He is very accurate with his pitches too and can actually whistle them in tight windows. If he had been forced to play, he played in the Detroit game, but if he had been forced to play more , I think he would have really opened a lot of people’s eyes on how talented he is, especially for being in the same system for a few years. “
Gabbert, 31, lost the entire 2019 season in Tampa after a pre-season shoulder injury. He appeared in four games, completing 9 of 16 passes for 143 yards and two touchdowns. All but one were incomplete in their 40-point victory over Detroit in Week 16.
The ex-No. 10 overall chosen by the Jacksonville Jaguars has started no more than a handful of games in a season since 2015 with San Francisco. He started 10 games with the Jags for the last time in 2012, before being replaced and eventually becoming a newsboy.
Obviously, with Brady’s return and GOAT’s track record of staying healthy, finding a successor is not at the forefront in Tampa. Repeating himself as the Super Bowl champion is the main goal in 2021. But Licht will remain open-minded about Gabbert’s chances of being a successor.
“I will not discard anything now,” said Licht.
These are precisely the words the GM of Super Bowl champions should say about a reserve QB set to be a free agent. The Bucs probably want Gabbert back, and the possibility of eventually succeeding Brady may be enough to make the veteran return relatively cheaply.
For now, Brady’s eventual successor is simply hypothetical. Licht would be right to consider all paths before finally making that decision. But that is for another day.