The Buccaneers dropped quarterback Dan Orlovsky from the roster last week, but it appears they didn’t like living without him all that much.
Roy Cummings of the Tampa Tribune reports that Orlovsky re-signed with the team on Monday. That suggests his departure was caused by a difference of opinion as to Orlovsky’s value for the 2013 season, one that the Buccaneers wound up winning if Orlovsky’s brief stint as a free agent confirmed he wasn’t going to land the same deal or better in another town.
Buccaneers coach Greg Schiano has talked about creating competition for Josh Freeman, who is heading into the final year of his contract. He’s also more recently gone out of their way to make it clear that he sees Freeman as the starter and a player capable of leading the Buccaneers to better places.
Orlovsky’s a better fit on the latter side. He’s a decent veteran backup who could start in a pinch, but he’s been around eight years and isn’t going to be the guy who pushes Freeman aside. They’ll probably have to look to the draft for competition or an alternative to giving Freeman a new deal, giving them a couple of weeks to sort things out before the draft gets underway.