If you have been a fan or simply have paid close attention to the Buccaneers for the last 25 years, you’ll easily remember the Jon Gruden era when Tampa Bay won Super Bowl XXXVII against the then-Oakland Raiders in handed fashion back in 2002.

While Gruden delivered a Super Bowl, his overall tenure was flawed to a certain extent. A big reason why is because he never trusted young quarterbacks to take over and play to the level he needed quarterbacks to play in his system.

Gruden always preferred the vets, even if their ceiling was lower than a promising youngster. It eventually came back to bite him because he would continuously start guys like Brian Griese. Jeff Garcia, and even Brad Johnson, despite the latter working out for the ‘02 season.

He consistently took older quarterbacks with lower ceilings instead of developing younger QBs that could lead the franchise for years to come. Gruden was never willing to develop a quarterback who could be a long-term answer in Tampa Bay and that was his downfall.

I mean, the only reason Chris Simms and Bruce Gradkowski ever stepped on the field in meaningful fashion is because the guys ahead of them (Griese and Simms himself, respectively) got hurt.

So that’s why it’s extremely refreshing to hear Todd Bowles and Jason Licht’s mindset when it comes to players like Jalon Daniels and the team in general heading into 2026 and maybe even beyond.

Bowles makes his stance on young players crystal clear

Bowles was asked about the common perception that coaches don’t trust rookies the way they trust veterans. That’s just not the case with Tampa Bay right now. The Buccaneers are looking at probably two rookies at minimum starting on defense in Week 1 in Rueben Bain Jr. and Josiah Trotter. On top of that, plenty of other rookies will contribute, including Keionte Scott and Ted Hurst, among others.

Throw in additional rookies in previous years like Emeka Egbuka, Graham Barton, and Calijah Kancey and it becomes even more obvious the Bucs are just fine with playing lesser-experienced guys. If you want to move out of the first round, then names like Cody Mauch, Yaya Diaby, and even Antoine Winfield Jr. (among many others) stand out.

Bowles was pretty clear in his answer when asked how he views young players versus veterans.

“There’s no age limit on when you can play,” Bowles told reporters. “You know, once you come in the league, if you can learn it fast enough and you’re a good football player, you’re going to play here.”

It’s great to hear Bowles embrace youth and projection over established play. Sure, there is a certain comfort level and a certain floor that comes with established play. But your ceiling is capped a lot of times because, for instance, we know what a 30-plus-year-old Baker Mayfield is going to bring to the table. We don’t really know what Daniels is going to bring in terms of his ceiling.

And right now, his ceiling looks pretty damn good. 

The ultimate tiebreaker has to be talent

When you compare the two together, it definitely creates a conversation about what positions need that veteran guy and what positions don’t. But the ultimate tiebreaker has to be talent and the understanding of the playbook.

To Bowles’ point, if you understand the playbook, you understand the system, and the coaches have faith that you know where you need to be in the right situations, and you have the talent to match up or take on any player lined up against you, why not play that player?

Sure, a mistake is going to be made. But veterans make mistakes all the time. So why be overly cautious with a young player who could be dynamic compared to a veteran who might make the same mistake for all we know, but can’t provide that level of dynamism the youngster can?

Regardless, Bowles and Licht have the right way of thinking. Even though Jake Browning was a veteran quarterback, Daniels clearly outplayed him during the preseason and deserved the role. It’s refreshing to see that the Buccaneers’ coach and general manager have an open mind when it comes to the status of a young player versus a veteran, and it gives Tampa Bay a much better shot at building something sustainable than what Gruden ever allowed himself to do.