The speculation began as soon as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers announced the release of veteran quarterback Josh McCown on Wednesday.
With an uncertain backup quarterback situation for 2015, might the Ravens consider reuniting the 35-year-old with offensive coordinator Marc Trestman? McCown experienced the best season of his career under Trestman in Chicago, throwing 13 touchdowns and just one interception while posting a 109.0 passer rating in eight games (five starts) during the 2013 season.
It makes sense strictly from a football standpoint, but their highly-publicized salary-cap issues make a signing unlikely. The Ravens haven’t invested real money in a backup quarterback since 2010 when they paid veteran Marc Bulger — who never took a snap — $3.8 million in an uncapped season that preceded a new collective bargaining agreement a year later. General manager Ozzie Newsome saved plenty of cap space over the last four years simply rolling the dice with 2011 sixth-round pick Tyrod Taylor as the backup.
Even if franchise quarterback Joe Flacco fails to continue his streak of never missing a start in 2015, it’s difficult to justify pumping real money into a backup who might never play. If a short-term injury were to occur, the Ravens will try to survive with a cheaper option — 2014 sixth-round pick Keith Wenning is a clear possibility — and perhaps look for a veteran on the free-agent market. If Flacco were to go down with a long-term ailment, the Ravens — like any team lucky enough to have a franchise quarterback — aren’t winning a championship with McCown anyway.
On the flip side, McCown likely wouldn’t view the Ravens as an ideal destination if he has any interest in actually playing in 2015. A number of teams with shaky quarterback situations would be better landing spots and willing to pay him more money.
After signing a two-year, $10 million contract last offseason, McCown struggled in his lone season with Tampa Bay, throwing 11 touchdowns and 14 interceptions in 11 starts. With McCown’s release, the Buccaneers are expected to draft Florida State’s Jameis Winston or Oregon’s Marcus Mariota with the first overall pick of this year’s draft.
If he’s interested in a veteran-minimum contract, it makes sense for Baltimore.
Anything beyond that would be a poor investment for a team with Super Bowl aspirations and a number of other important positions to address this offseason.
