Sunday, 3 a.m.
It didn’t matter much, and it won’t matter long. It was a dress-up practice, like most of these preseason football games, and for the Tampa Bay Bucs, it merely meant that winning is better than losing.
But to Kyle Trask, it mattered.
Trask, trying to convince the world that the Bucs’ quarterback job is an open competition, make his best argument in Saturday night’s 13-6 victory over the New York Jets.
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Trask, the kid with nine career passes, was solid in the victory. He hit 20 of 28 passes for 218 yards. He seemed calm in the pocket and protected the ball. His 33-yard touchdown pass to Trey Palmer came on a tip, but he still seemed willing to throw deep.
Was it enough? Or did the decision not to play Baker Mayfield indicate that he has the job locked up and is considered too valuable to risk injury, such as Mike Evans and Chris Godwin?
Likewise, the Jets chose not to play either Aaron Rodgers or Dalvin Cook.
John Wolford, the Rays third quarterback, suffered a neck injury and was taken to the hospital.
The Bucs did run the ball better against the Jets, getting 72 yards on 32 carries. No, it’s no much. Sean Tucker rained 37 yards, but veteran Ke’Shawn Vaughn gained a minus eight yards on four tries.
The Rays conclude their preseason schedule Saturday night at Raymond James against Baltimore at 7 p..m.