After throwing for over 4000 yards last season (the first time in his career), it’s hard to believe Josh Freeman will somehow lose his starting quarterback job to rookie Mike Glennon. Still, Greg Schiano drafted the former North Carolina State QB for a reason, and there’s a chance that by the end of the season, or possibly even earlier if things go really bad, we might see the Tampa Bay Buccaneers making a change.

Freeman, entering his fifth NFL season has been up and down through the first four seasons of his career, with most of the problems coming from a dysfunctional offensive line. Last year, once Carl Nicks arrived, things looked much better for Freeman and the Bucs, who still had plenty of defensive problems, but were one of the better teams in the league offensively both in the air, with Freeman making the most of Vincent Jackson and Mike Williams, while on the ground it was rookie Doug Martin, with 1454 yards and 11 touchdowns, nearly reaching 2000 yards from scrimmage.

Glennon knows a thing or two about usurping starting quarterbacks. Not himself, but his first two years in college were on the bench, playing behind Russell Wilson. Once Wilson transferred to Wisconsin, Glennon got a shot at the starting spot. Meanwhile, Wilson went in as an underdog to the Seattle Seahawks preseason training camp, just like Glennon is now. He came out as the starting quarterback, leading the Seahawks into the postseason.

He can play quickly if needed, but our situation will be only if he’s needed, or if he wins the job. Look, I’m not against that. We have a starting quarterback. It’s not like we’re looking to find a starter. But competition is competition. Mike Glennon is a fierce competitor. I knew that when he was coming out of high school. Now being able to work with him a little, you can see it on the practice field.

Greg Schiano isn’t giving Glennon the job. It’s Freeman’s to lose, first and foremost. But with Freeman entering a contract year, thinking about someone who’ll take his place isn’t such a bad idea. If Freeman does have a bad, disappointing season, which isn’t all that unlikely considering his instability up to this point in his NFL career, Glennon is someone Schiano believes can become a starter pretty quickly in the NFL.

Sure, being a big guy (6’6, 220 lbs), Glennon isn’t the most mobile of quarterbacks. It’s the pocket or nothing else for him, but so far, from scouts and Schiano himself, it seems everyone is very pleased with his vision and pocket presence, making his lack of ability to escape defenders not that serious as long as the Bucs’ offensive line keeps improving. Maybe not this year, but the Bucs seem to have drafted Glennon with a future starting spot in mind, not having complete trust in Freeman’s ability to make the most of the weapons at his disposal.

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