TAMPA, FLORIDA – JANUARY 16: Tom Brady #12 of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers reacts after a play against the Dallas Cowboys during the fourth quarter in the NFC Wild Card playoff game at Raymond James Stadium on January 16, 2023 in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Julio Aguilar/Getty Images)
For three seasons, Tom Brady provided the Tampa Bay Buccaneers with one of the best quarterback situations in the NFL.

But with Brady now retired (seemingly for good, this time), the Buccaneers enter 2023 with perhaps the most uncertainty at the game’s most important position. Their starting options are Baker Mayfield (now on his fourth team in three seasons) and 2021 second-round pick Kyle Trask.

During a recent appearance on “NFL Total Access” (h/t JoeBucsFan.com), NFL Network and analyst David Carr expressed optimism that Mayfield can bounce back in Tampa Bay. At the same time, however, Carr also noted that the seven-time Super Bowl champion covered up a ton of issues for the Bucs.

The Buccaneers entered 2022 as one of the prime Super Bowl favorites, but they wound up being one of football’s biggest disappointments. Indeed, Brady’s play was practically the reason the Bucs managed to win the hapless NFC South despite a losing record of 8-9.

Brady memorably needed to complete miraculous fourth quarter comebacks against the Los Angeles Rams, New Orleans Saints and Carolina Panthers to help the Bucs win football’s weakest division.

ampa Bay had the second-best scoring offense in 2021 (30.1 points per game), but that number dropped to a brutal 18.4 PPG which placed them 25th overall.

With all due respect to Mayfield and Trask, it’s hard to envision Tampa’s offense improving much (if at all) with Brady no longer there to mask the many problems the NFC South club endured in the 2022 campaign.