TAMPA, Fla. — The Bucs have a developmental quarterback in Florida’s Kyle Trask, whom they took in the second round of last week’s NFL draft.
But if something were to happen to Tom Brady, Blaine Gabbert would be the next guy under center.
The Bucs and Gabbert on Wednesday agreed to a one-year, $2 million contract. It could be worth up to $2.5 million based on performance incentives.
Gabbert, 31, is entering his third season with the Bucs. He spent the 2017 season playing in Bruce Arians’ offense in Arizona.
Earlier this offseason, the Bucs also re-signed No. 3 quarterback Ryan Griffin. The 31-year-old former Tulane star is entering his seventh season with Tampa Bay but has attempted only four regular-season passes.
Gabbert passed for 143 yards and two touchdowns in mop-up duty for Brady last season.
“First of all, I love his energy,” Bucs general manager Jason Licht said of Gabbert in February. “I’ve really gotten close to Blaine this year just being on the sidelines. He’s a really smart guy, but he is one guy, my scouts and I talk about this a lot, he’s just one guy that I love to watch throw every day in practice because he has got a cannon.
“He’s very accurate with his throws, as well, and he can just really whistle them in in tight windows. If he had been forced to play — he played in the Detroit game, but if he had been forced to play more — I think that he would have really opened a lot of people’s eyes about how talented he is, especially being in the same system for a couple of years.”
The drafting of Trask may change those plans, but Gabbert is the most prepared to replace Brady in the short term.
