How Blaine Gabbert can help Bruce Arians become the 'quarterback whisperer' again
To quote the ever-knowledgeable Forrest Gump: Bruce Arians and quarterbacks go together like peas and carrots. Before he joined the Buccaneers, Arians always got the most out of his quarterbacks. He was so successful he earned the nickname "quarterback whisperer" and even wrote a book titled as such. But then 2019 and Jameis Winston came […]
To quote the ever-knowledgeable Forrest Gump: Bruce Arians and quarterbacks go together like peas and carrots.
Before he joined the Buccaneers, Arians always got the most out of his quarterbacks. He was so successful he earned the nickname "quarterback whisperer" and even wrote a book titled as such.
But then 2019 and Jameis Winston came along. Arians did have success with Winston, but it wasn't what he'd been used to. Winston threw for a league-high 33 touchdowns and 5,109 yards that year, but Arians couldn't stop the turnovers. The former Seminole became the first NFL signal-caller to throw 30+ interceptions during a season in over 30 years. He led the NFL with 35 total turnovers that year.
Arians never got a chance to make amends with Winston because Tom Brady became a free agent the following offseason. And I mean, c'mon. Why wouldn't Arians ditch Winston for the greatest quarterback of all-time?
Brady and Arians obviously had a ton of success. A Super Bowl ring, a division title, two home playoff games, and 83 passing touchdowns over two seasons are proof of that. However, it's fair to wonder how much Arians was actually involved when it comes to developing Brady's success. And even if Arians was a key cog, you can't blame people for assuming the success was mostly attributed to Brady. Fair or unfair.
That is no slight against Arians. Let's be real, though. Brady wasn't a fifth-year player who was still in somewhat of a development phase like Winston. Brady is/was fully developed; his game and tendencies well-known. There wasn't much -if anything- Arians needed to do when it came to developing Brady's game. All Brady needed to do was learn the offense, which was mostly taught to him by backup quarterback Blaine Gabbert.
Ah, yes. Gabbert. The Buccaneers presumed -and likely- starter in 2022. The guy who hasn't started an NFL game since the 2018 season and nearly has a 1:1 TD-INT ratio over the course of his 11-year career.
It's understandable if you get shivers when thinking of Gabbert as the Buccaneers' starter. And not the good shivers. Especially when Brady was the guy before him. No one will ever be Brady, but at the same time, it's impossible to ignore the potential drop in play between he and Gabbert.
Which is why Gabbert could ultimately be the feather in Arians' cap when it's all said and done.
Just imagine if Arians is able to work his magic with Gabbert and make him into an adequate starter in 2022. We're not talking All-Pro- or MVP-type season. We're not really even talking Pro Bowl. That wouldn't be a realistic starting point based off Gabbert's career sample size.
But a 22-27 passing touchdown season with 8-10 interceptions? Gabbert has never thrown for more than 12 touchdowns in a single season. That would certainly be considered a top-notch job by Arians if he were to get that type of production from Gabbert in 2022. Who knows, that could be enough for Tampa Bay to make it back to the postseason, as well.
And it would easily relabel him as the "quarterback whisperer" once again.
Featured image via-Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports
