Bucs camp tour: Leftwich winds up with another big chance

[Warren2ThaG]

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Bucs camp tour: Leftwich winds up with another big chance

TAMPA, Fla. -- Byron Leftwich's wide, ever-present smile was gone for a long time, replaced by the fear he might not start in the NFL again, a quarterback career gone bad, another possible bust passer from the top of the draft.

 

Talk about scary.

 

"You think about it, but you hope you get the chance again," Leftwich said. "But I have to admit, there were times I wondered."

 

He has that chance again. Signed by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the spring, the former first-round pick of the Jacksonville Jaguars has a real chance to be the opening-day starter for the Bucs. Don't let the team's recently released depth chart fool you.

 

Luke McCown is atop that chart, but he hasn't been the best quarterback in camp this summer. According to team sources and observers, Leftwich has been, and barring a disaster in the preseason, he will be the team's opening-day starter.

 

This is the same Byron Leftwich with the big windup motion many contend will never allow him to be a success. This is the same slow-footed quarterback who experts say isn't nimble enough to succeed in the NFL, the same quarterback jettisoned from starter to off the roster in Jacksonville two years ago only nine days before the opening of the regular season.

 

Is he really on the verge of winning a starting job again?

 

"This is all I wanted," Leftwich said. "Just a chance to show I could compete for one."

 

First-year Tampa Bay coach Raheem Morris said he won't make a decision until after the second preseason game, but all indications are that if Leftwich plays well in the preseason, the job is his. He will start the second preseason game against -- you guessed it -- the Jaguars in Jacksonville.

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http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/story/12057154

Edited August 13, 2009 by Warren2ThaG