Blaine Gabbert News

The veteran didn't see action until the regular-season finale against the Falcons, when Tom Brady exited the game for good during the second quarter. Gabbert played on a one-year deal in 2022, and despite the fact there appears to be a good chance Tom Brady plays elsewhere in 2023, it's unlikely Gabbert is a serious contender for the starting job even if he's re-signed.

Tampa Bay is locked into the fourth seed for the NFC playoffs, so while Tom Brady will start, it's expected the veteran quarterback won't play the entire game. If that's the case, Gabbert will be the next man up, while Bowles also mentioned that Kyle Trask is likely to be active and may see action when Brady and Gabbert are taken out.

Gabbert was the second quarterback in with Tom Brady making his preseason debut, and the veteran backup was able to helm a nine-play, 81-yard scoring march that culminated in a Ke'Shawn Vaughn one-yard touchdown run. Gabbert saw action in all three exhibitions and was efficient in each, and he'll open the season in the familiar and typically low-volume role of backing up the highly durable Brady.

By bringing back Gabbert, who spent the past two seasons as Tom Brady's primary backup, the Bucs have retained all four quarterbacks they carried either on their active roster or practice squad last year. Per Greg Auman of The Athletic, it remains to be seen if Gabbert maintains his depth chart standing, however, with 2021 second-rounder Kyle Trask a candidate to push him for the team's No. 2 signal-caller role.

Despite the unremarkable numbers and the near turnover, Carmen Vitali of the team's official site reports Arians has been very pleased with the projected No. 2 quarterback's recent work. "I think Blaine has been really, really good," said Arians. "He had great practices against [the Titans]. If we catch the ball for him, he's going to take us right down the field and score again. So I've got all the confidence in the world." Gabbert saw action in four games last season and went 9-for-16 for 143 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions, and he appears set to beat out Ryan Griffin for the top backup job for the second consecutive season.

Gabbert entered last weekend's exhibition matchup against the Bengals after Tom Brady handled a single series, but the journeyman veteran will officially get the start Saturday. After Gabbert, who looks set to reprise his role as Brady's primary backup during the regular season, Ryan Griffin and rookie Kyle Trask also stand to see some action.