Leftwich the right fit for Tampa Bay.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers may have found the steal of the off-season in signing 29 year old quarterback Byron Leftwich.

Leftwich–once a superstar in the making–has been the victim of some nagging injuries in the last few seasons that has slowed his career a bit, but certainly has a lot of tread left on the tires.

Starting his career a few hundred miles north with the Jacksonville Jaguars, Leftwich had all you could ask for in a young quarterback prospect. He stands tall and strong like a sequoia tree, his 6′5″ 245 pound frame is uncommon for quarterbacks. He could run. He had a cannon. He had the smarts needed to learn complex offensive schemes, and what’s most important, he was a leader.

Remember the classic footage of Leftwich in college being carried down the field by his offensive lineman?

Allow me to set the stage.

November 2nd, 2002. Leftwich, quarterback of the Marshall Thundering Herd were down to the Akron Zips by 17 points.

Operating from the shot gun, Leftwich would run a play, and then be carried back to the line of scrimmage by two of his lineman Steve Sciullo and Steve Perretta.

Leftwich and the Herd came up short in that game, losing to Akron 34-20, but you would be hard pressed to find an act as heroic as what Leftwich attempted to pull off.

The images of Leftwich being carried down the field by his teammates rank in the top 100 most memorable college football moments according to ESPN.com

Now THAT is gutsy. I can not even being to imagine the pain involved in breaking a shin…I barely bumped mine on the night stand two weeks ago, and that was enough to send me to the ground in pain.

All that tough guy gridiron talk aside, let’s take a look at the facts.

Leftwich brings something to the Buccaneers that they have not seen in recent quarterbacks they have had.

No one ever claimed that Jeff Garcia, Brian Griese, Chris Simms, Brad Johnson or Shaun King would be “franchise” quarterbacks.

None of them had the physical skills, size and strength that Leftwich posseses.

None of them were true leaders, that demanded the attention of the players on the field. They were marginal, at best. Johnson won a Super Bowl with the Bucs because he was surrounded in a wealth of talented team mates. Garcia rode the success of being a system quarterback in San Fransisco and Philadelphia to a two year stint with the Bucs. All of the above mentioned came to Tampa Bay towards the end of there careers, with the exception of King, who fizzled after one playoff run.

Leftwich–if he plays it right and can stay away from the injury bug–should be a great option for the Bucs for the next 3 or 4 years, while the team grooms first round selection Josh Freeman.

His statistics with Jacksonville in his years as a starter were strong. He compiled a 24-20 record with the Jaguars, threw 51 touchdowns and only 36 interceptions, completing 58.7 percent of his passes for 9,042 yards.

While these numbers may not be worthy of consideration for a bid to the Hall of Fame in Canton, they are not bad either.

While we know injuries have been the bane of Leftwich’s existance in the last few years, the fact of the matter is the Bucs have a very strong, impressive offensive line, anchored by Davin Joseph and Jeff Faine, which should help to provide the best protection Leftwich has seen as a consistant starter–should he win the battle with Luke McNown for the number one job this season.

I think that with a little patience, if Leftwich can stay healthy, he will give the Buccaneers there most viable threat at quarterback in years.

It is rare to find a guy with all the physical skills Leftwich has, and when you throw in the fact the guy is an absolute gladiator with a never quit attitude, it is a mix for a very dangerous quarterback.

If he can manage to pull that off the Bucs will turn some heads in a rebuilding year for first year coach Raheem Morris.

Comments, questions, concerns? Talk it up! Leave a comment below or contact me at thomas.gemkow@tampabayraysfan.com and as always, follow me on Twitter @ThomasGemkow

Tags: Akron Zips, Brad Johnson, Brian Griese, Buccaneers, Bucs, Byron Leftwich, Football, gladiator, gridiron, injuries, Jacksonville, Josh Freeman, Marshall Thundering Herd, NFL, Philadelphia, Raheem Morris, San Fransisco, Shaun King, Tampa Bay Bucs, Thomas Gemkow