The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are still giddy over the signing of 42-year-old future Hall of Fame quarterback Tom Brady. It’s a feeling that won’t die down any time soon as Brady transitions to Tampa after two decades with the New England Patriots.
In no way does this mean the Buccaneers are not planning for life without the aging signal caller. According to Albert Breer of MMQB, the expectation is that Tampa will target Brady’s heir apparent in the 2020 NFL Draft next week.
“I’d keep an eye on the Buccaneers potentially drafting a quarterback in April, which would not be unlike when the Broncos signed Peyton Manning in March 2012 and drafted Brock Osweiler a month later,” the report read.
Brady pushed back against mentoring young quarterbacks during the latter part of his tenure with New England. That famously included Jimmy Garoppolo. Though, it is something he’s open to doing at this stage of his career.
Breer specifically mentioned Utah State’s Jordan Love and Washington’s Jacob Eason as two quarterbacks that could interest the Buccaneers. Love is seen as a near first-round lock while Eason could potentially be had with Tampa Bay’s second-round pick (45th overall).
It would be somewhat of a surprise if the Bucs went quarterback at No. 14 in the first round. They signed Brady to compete for a title. Adding an immediate impact performer has to be the goal here.