Bucs, Bowles Have Spotty Success vs. Rookie QBs And Backups
Tampa Bay’s defense has certainly been better under Bowles than it had been in the years (and decade?) leading up to his arrival in 2019. But even still, the unit’s performances have been a mixed bag when facing rookies over the years. Let’s take a look at each rookie signal-caller Tampa Bay has seen over the last four seasons:
2019 Week 3: Daniel Jones 23-of-36, 336 yards, 2 TD, 0 INT, 4 rush, 28 yards, 2 TD (Giants 32, Bucs 31)
2019 Week 10: Kyler Murray 27-of-44, 324 yards, 3 TD, 1 INT, 3 rush, 38 yards (Bucs 30, Cardinals 27)
2019 Week 13: Gardner Minshew (off the bench) 16-of-27, 147 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT (Bucs 28, Jaguars 11)
2019 Week 15: David Blough 24-of-43, 260 yards, 0 TD, 2 INT (Bucs 38, Lions 17)
2020 Week 5: Justin Herbert 20-of-25, 290 yards, 3 TD, 1 INT (Bucs 38, Chargers 31)
2021 Week 4: Mac Jones 31-of-40, 275 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT (Bucs 19, Patriots 17)
2021 Week 7: Justin Fields 22-of-32, 184 yards, 3 INT, 8 rush, 38 yards (Bucs 38, Bears 3)
2021 Week 17: Zach Wilson 19-of-33, 234 yards, 1 TD, 0 INT (Bucs 28, Jets 24)
2022 Week 6: Kenny Pickett 11-of-18, 67 yards, 1 TD, 2 rush, 16 yards (Steelers 20, Bucs 18)
The interesting takeaway from that list is that the Bucs are 7-2 against rookie quarterbacks under Bowles, and they’ve won seven of their last eight games against them. But some of those performances could’ve just as easily led to losses.
Murray and the Cardinals gave Tampa Bay some issues in 2019. Herbert and the Chargers very well should’ve beaten Brady and the Bucs in 2020. Jones and the Patriots came close to ruining Brady’s homecoming to Foxboro last year, while Wilson and the Jets were a missed fourth down away from beating Tampa Bay last January.
