The Bucs are hoping quarterback Baker Mayfield can play on Sunday against the 3-8 Cardinals. But they are preparing for the possibility that he cannot go. The team made the conscious decision to bring in veteran Teddy Bridgewater to back up Mayfield this year and jettisoned former second-round pick Kyle Trask, who had been with the team for four years. Bridgewater brings experience to the position, but he doesn’t play like Mayfield. And the offense can’t run the same with him at the helm.

Bucs QB Teddy Bridgewater – Photo by: USA Today

Todd Bowles said exactly as much earlier this week.

“He’s a different quarterback, so schematically, we’ll have to do some different things for him to make him feel comfortable within the offense and do a lot of things he likes to do,” Bowles said. “There are some similar things, but there are also some differences that way to make him more comfortable. He’s been here long enough to where if he had to go, we can tweak it the right way for him to be successful.”

Bucs Under Center Less

The Bucs have used shotgun or pistol on first down 45% of the time this year. Look for that number to go up. In Bridgewater’s last extended regular season action in 2022 with the Dolphins, he operated out of pistol or shotgun around 55% of the time. In the three years since those snaps, Bridgewater has only gotten older and slower.

Putting him under center is asking him to use quick feet and additional steps to get the ball out. It’s not where he is at his best and should be a more limited part of the gameplan going forward. For most offenses, reducing or eliminating the under center element would substantially alter the run game. But the Bucs have three things going for them that could limit those alterations.

Counter

Normally in a shotgun setting, runs are more-or-less defined in terms of direction because the running back is lined to one side of the quarterback and for a natural handoff they will cut across the quarterback to the opposite side. But because the Bucs are back to majoring in counter, averaging 5.3 yards per carry and +0.13 EPA/carry from that design this year, they can still be successful from a shotgun set. Those counter runs can also force opposing defenses to keep their box counts even horizontally and open up more success on front side runs.

Pistol

The Bucs have used pistol on just 27 plays this year. But they have found some success with it.

Bucs running from pistol on first down this year. 7.2 yards per carry and +0.30 epa/rush pic.twitter.com/7RCynfWuuD

— Josh Queipo (@JoshQueipo_NFL) November 27, 2025

Pistol helps simulate an under center run game by keeping the running back directly behind the quarterback and thus not tipping the direction of a potential run. At the same time, it puts the quarterback several yards behind the center and helps the passing attack not have to ask the quarterback to turn his back to the defense.

21 Personnel

The Bucs were one of the best 21 personnel (two running backs, one tight end) teams in the NFL last year under former offensive coordinator Liam Coen. This year, they have not used the package nearly as much. But they still have been moderately successful with it. And with the return of Bucky Irving, they have all the pieces to regain the success they had last year.

Most of the 21 personnel the team has used since the beginning of 2024 has been from shotgun or pistol, so this would dovetail well with how Bridgewater works best.

Bucs RB Bucky Irving – Photo by: USA Today

Spread Formations

Bridgewater is at his best when he gets to play point guard. From spread formations, he can quickly survey the field, pick out his best matchup, pull quick tells from the defense because they have to declare their intentions more clearly, and get the ball out fast. This is the overlap that Bowles was discussing because this has traditionally been an area that Mayfield has excelled at, though this year the Bucs offense has struggled.

Working from these looks, Bridgewater can hit quick in and out breakers to pick up quick yardage, while taking downfield shots more selectively. Mayfield has been targeting the deep part of the field – 20 air yards or beyond – 13% of the time this year. Bridgewater’s deep passing rates are a bit lower and less effective than Mayfield’s. His arm isn’t of the same caliber as Mayfield’s, and he won’t be able to fit the high velocity hole shots outside the numbers.

A different level of arm strength. pic.twitter.com/jsEcKG1l2b

— Josh Queipo (@JoshQueipo_NFL) November 27, 2025

Instead, when offensive coordinator Josh Grizzard wants to attack the Cardinals, he will need to find his best intermediate concepts that aim to stress the middle of the field. This will call for less sail concepts and more seam runners, Mills, and Daggers where Bridgewater can look to attack the middle of the field with timing and rhythm.

On time and in rhythm pic.twitter.com/CpnWVRVIew

— Josh Queipo (@JoshQueipo_NFL) November 27, 2025

Ultimately, Bridgewater is a more limited quarterback. This is often the case with backups, especially when the starter is Baker Mayfield. With Mayfield, there is no part of a playbook that is truly off the table. With Bridgewater, there will be limitations. If the Bucs’ franchise quarterback cannot go, Grizzard will have to find creative ways to cater to Bridgewater’s strengths, and more importantly scheme around his deficiencies, if the Bucs are to win and move to 7-5.