The 10 Best Buccaneers Quarterbacks of All Time, Ranked

Getty/Heavy on Buccaneers

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are by no means the most illustrious franchise in the National Football League. In fact, the Bucs have the worst win percentage of any current NFL team since the 1970 merger (0.408), a solid 0.01 percentage points below the next worst team, the Cleveland Browns.

However, unlike most historically poor franchises, the Bucs find a way to invigorate themselves every two decades or so and win themselves a Lombardi Trophy. Their first came in 2002 under quarterback Brad Johnson and head coach Jon Gruden, and the next under the stewardship of GOAT Tom Brady and head coach Bruce Arians.

Quarterback play, as a result, has been very up and down, with much of the bad canceling out the good and vice versa.

Here’s a look at the 10 best Buccaneers QBs of all time, ranked:

10. Vinny Testaverde (1987 – 1992)

GettyVinny Testaverde.

Testament that long starting spells don’t necessarily equate to successful ones, Vinny Testaverde spent the formative years of what was actually a surprisingly impressive 21-year career in the NFL given his start in Tampa Bay. About as interception-prone as any former No. 1 overall pick at quarterback over the past few decades, Testaverde twice led the league in interceptions, including in 1988, where he posted an abysmal 1:3 touchdown to pick ratio. Toward the end of his Buccaneers career, the UMiami product began to find his footing, including a 1990 season in which he managed a Bucs’ career high 75.6 passer rating, and rushed for 280 yards. Ultimately, consistently poor playing and erratic decision making bought his budding Tampa Bay career to an early close, during which time he failed to produce a single winning season for the franchise.

9. Ryan Fitzpatrick (2017 – 2018)

GettyRyan Fitzpatrick.

Certainly not the only QB Top 10 list Fitzpatrick has ended up on, Ryan “Fitzmagic” revived what was previously the epitome of a journeyman quarterback career — one that went further than his seventh-round draft pedigree would have ever suggested — during his years in Tampa Bay. Bucs fans will remember him for his borderline historic start to the 2018 season, registering 819 passing yards, 8 touchdowns and just 1 interception in just his first two games. A cooler continuation to his red-hot start saw Jameis Winston eventually regain his role as the starter, but Fitzpartrick’s ultra dynamic, cannon-ball style of offense makes him if not the best quarterback in Buccaneers franchise history, then very possibly the most exciting.

8. Josh Freeman (2009 – 2013)

GettyJosh Freeman.

The second consecutive 17th-overall pick on this list, Josh Freeman was selected exactly 31 years after his fellow draft number-ee Doug Williams. And despite doing good things he will most likely, as with Williams, be regarded as a failure given his release after a little more than four years starting for the Buccaneers. However, after a shaky first season, Freeman brought Tampa Bay to a 10-6 record, throwing for 25 touchdowns and just 6 interceptions with an impressive 95.9 passer rating. While this proved to be the highlight of Freeman’s time with the Bucs, slumping in his third season before a rejuvenated year four proved to not be enough for new coach Greg Schiano to keep him in his plans long term, Freeman will be remembered as one of the more talented players to play QB for the franchise.

7. Doug Williams (1978 – 1982)

GettyDoug Williams.

The Bucs’ first quarterback to start multiple seasons, Doug Williams’ tenure was marred by on- and off-the-field racism from fans, coaches and ownership alike as the first high-profile, first-round Black quarterback in the NFL. A strong arm and a deep ball prowess fail to hide inconsistencies in accuracy and a partiality for interceptions, yet Williams manage to raise up a franchise that prior to and after him were very much the cellar-dwellers of the NFL. Three playoff appearances, a playoff win and a dynamic, dualistic approach to NFL quarterbacking gets Williams on the list at No. 7.

6. Jeff Garcia (2007 – 2008)

GettyJeff Garcia.

Better known for his spell in San Francisco as the heir to the Joe Montana/Steve Young almost two-decade dynasty, Jeff Garcia had some extremely solid years in Tampa Bay, stabilizing what had been some up-and-down years in the post-Super Bowl Jon Gruden era. Garcia cleaned up some of his more erratic decision making during his time with the Bucs, recording career lows in interceptions/game (starts) and completion percentage. While Garcia was not quite the dynamic playmaker that 49ers had seen, consistently throwing for 30+ touchdowns and 3,000+ yards in the early 2000s, he transitioned well to the more concise, tactical game manager role excellently. Holding a regular season record of 14-10 with 1 career playoff game, Garcia is a very worthy addition to this list.

5. Baker Mayfield (2023 – Present)

GettyBaker Mayfield.

The former No. 1 overall pick in 2018 bounced around a couple of teams after his departure from the Cleveland Browns after the 2021 season, eventually finding his feet in Tampa in what many thought would be a one-year, bridge quarterback situation. Baker Mayfield, as he has been prone to do in the past, proved conventional wisdom wrong in throwing for 4,044 yards and 28 touchdowns — both career highs — as the Buccaneers moved into the post-Tom Brady era with grace. Baker became just the sixth Bucs QB to win a playoff game in 2023 and has kept the pace up in the ongoing 2024 season, hitting a 71.4 completion percentage and a whopping 104.1 passer rating as the high flying Tampa Bay offense soars once again.

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4. Jameis Winston (2015 – 2019)

GettyJameis Winston.

Another dynamic thrower of the ball who was partial to letting it rip downfield, Jameis Winston was voted to the Pro Bowl in his rookie season, in what was an exciting start to his pro football career, led by consecutive 4,000+ passing seasons in 2015 and 2016. A failure to rid himself of costly interceptions, particularly in the deep ball game, ultimately led to the Buccaneers going a different route — although there are few teams who would have not given up their quarterback for the GOAT, Tom Brady. A wholly riveting, can’t look away 2019 season in which Winston became the inaugural member of the 30-30 club under “no risk-it, no biscuit” head coach Bruce Arians and never brought a boring day to the city of Tampa Bay.

3. Trent Dilfer (1994 – 1999)

GettyTrent Dilfer.

A Super Bowl winning quarterback — just not for the Buccaneers. Trent Dilfer broke a 14-year playoff drought for the Bucs with the help of Hall of Fame coach Tony Dungy and helped lay the foundations for the Super Bowl-winning team of 2002 season. Two playoff wins and a 1997 Pro Bowl don’t necessarily imply next level amounts of greatness, but for a franchise that had been fairly stagnant and seen little continued success since their inception two decades prior, Dilfer’s efficient play allowed them to win games with few critical mistakes.

2. Brad Johnson (2001 – 2004)

GettyBrad Johnson.

The winner of the Buccaneers’ inaugural Super Bowl win, Brad Johnson does not have the repertoire of many of his fellow Lombardi Trophy winners. Yet, a very efficient 22 touchdowns and only 6 picks, Pro Bowl 2002 season was all he needed to bring the silverware home to South Florida in a strong postseason display in which he allowed the offense to play second fiddle to a dominant defense. While Johnson only played a full three seasons in Tampa Bay before being benched four games into the 2004 season, Johnson had three steady years with the Bucs, finishing with a 26-23 regular season record.

1. Tom Brady (2020 – 2022)

GettyTom Brady.

The only correct answer to the question of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ greatest ever QB. The team’s second ever Super Bowl winner, and indeed one of only two players to have ever beaten Patrick Mahomes in the postseason. Tom Brady put up three stellar statistical seasons, including a 2021 campaign that merited, and could have been MVP-winning, were it not for Aaron Rodgers’ simultaneously excellent year for the Green Bay Packers. Despite playing for only three years, Brady has the second-greatest number of touchdown passes for any Buccaneers quarterback in history (108). No true weaknesses in his game, playing at a level that was near the peak of his ability aged well into his mid-40s, Brady clearly earns this top spot.

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