Tampa Bay Buccaneers Pro Bowl wide receiver Mike Evans may have been more vocal in his excitement at Tom Brady's impending arrival under center, but Bucs head coach Bruce Arians thinks another one of his pass-catchers should be just as ecstatic.
Arians said tight end O.J. Howard's “eyes should light up” given Brady's tendency to use his tight ends with frequency (via ESPN's Jenna Laine):
“No quarterback has thrown for more yards (16,563) or touchdowns (176) to tight ends since 2001.”
“When Arians was asked last week about how Brady’s signing might have an impact on Howard, he said, ‘[Howard's] eyes should light up. It’s still going out on the practice field and earning that trust. I think that will be his No. 1 focus. You have a quarterback that likes to throw to tight ends — go earn it and get balls thrown to you.'”
Howard had a breakout sophomore season in 2018, hauling in 34 receptions for 565 yards and five touchdowns in just 10 games. However, Howard saw a massive decline in target share, yards per reception and yards per target last season while also notching just one touchdown.
Brady has indeed had plenty of success working with talented tight ends, though it should be noted he had the good fortune of playing alongside one of the most gifted tight ends ever in Rob Gronkowski.
Still, perhaps Arians is right to prop up his fourth-year tight end. Given the Bucs still have some holes in the running game, they will need all of their receiving options to be firing all cylinders when Brady comes to town.
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