Although he might be the best free agent quarterback available this year, Josh McCown recognizes that he might have to settle for being a backup after the Buccaneers cut him on Wednesday. And he’s fine with that.
McCown said on PFT Live that he recognizes where he is at the age of 35 and is just thankful that he still has opportunities in the NFL.
“That’s just business, man, and I understand it,” McCown said. “In perspective, though, there’s a lot worse things than losing your job that can happen to you in life.”
Looking back on a tough season in Tampa Bay in which the Bucs lost offensive coordinator Jeff Tedford to an illness right when the season was starting, McCown said he’s mostly just disappointed that he wasn’t able to help Bucs coach Lovie Smith win more games last year.
“I really respect Lovie,” McCown said. “My respect for him hasn’t changed.”
McCown said he’s talked to a few teams but wanted to keep the names of those teams private right now.
“My agent’s talked to some teams and so we’ll just evaluate as those come in,” McCown said. “It’s an honor and a privilege to play in this league, and there’s 32 teams, and so if one of them calls you, that’s a cool thing to me.”
It could make a lot of sense for McCown to reunite with Marc Trestman, who was the Bears’ head coach in 2013, when McCown had the best season of his NFL career. Trestman is now the Ravens’ offensive coordinator, and McCown could be a backup to Joe Flacco in Baltimore.
“I don’t think being a starter is a prerequisite at all,” McCown said. “I know that those opportunities are less and less as I get older.”
McCown said he does intend to play somewhere this year and isn’t considering retirement. He just needs to find the right fit. Getting cut this week gave him a month-long head start on other free agents, and should give him plenty of time to find that fit.