The Tampa Bay Buccaneers were one of the most inconsistent teams in the NFL last season while dealing with a porous defense and one of the biggest issues on offense was quarterback Josh Freeman, which means that rookie Mike Glennon might have a chance to start in 2013.
According to Pro Football Talk, Glennon will be getting a nice amount of reps in the preseason says GM Mark Dominik and while no one has said it publically, Glennon may have the chance to start. Schiano was not part of the regime that drafted Freeman after he took a step back last season from his 2011 performance, the job could be up for grabs, at least early on in the summer as Schiano tries to test his quarterback.
Glennon beating out a veteran as a third round pick at number 73 wouldn't be a big surprise, as Russell Wilson did the same thing in Seattle after being the 75th pick in the draft by beating out Matt Flynn. Funny enough, Glennon replaced Wilson as the quarterback at NC State when he transferred to Wisconsin.
Dominik mentioned that backup Dan Orlovsky and even Freeman may not get as many reps, meaning the backup position is likely Glennon's to lose and the starting position could be his to win if he impresses the staff. Freeman was a first round pick back in 2009, but after a few years at the helm the Bucs might be ready to move on. The team is not afraid to throw a rookie out there like they did with Doug Martin and that worked out fine.
The team went 7-9 last season and 3-3 in the NFC South while ranking 10th in the league in passing, 15th in rushing yards per game, although they had the top ranked run defense. The biggest problem was their last place ranked passing defense, but with Dashon Goldson and Darrelle Revis in the fold now, that will improve. Freeman threw for over 4,000 yards last season with 27 touchdowns, but he also had 17 interceptions and 10 fumbles and he will need to cut down on that to keep his job from Glennon.
"We're going to put a lot of pressure on [Glennon] and see a lot of reps from him in the preseason. He's got to play," Dominik said. "We may not see as much of Dan Orlovsky or even of Josh Freeman somewhat in the preseason as much as you're going to see Glennon."
