NEW ORLEANS -- There's a common thread to how the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have played in the last two games.
It's the play of second-year quarterback Mike Glennon. He's not performing like the quarterback of the future. Instead, Glennon is playing like the quarterback of the present and the future.
The 37-31 overtime loss Sunday to the New Orleans Saints isn't a moral victory for Glennon or the Bucs. But there is no shame in losing a shootout to Drew Brees in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome.
Glennon completed 19 of 32 passes for 249 yards with two touchdowns and an interception. He also helped the Bucs build an 11-point lead early in the fourth quarter.
"I liked his play overall," coach Lovie Smith said. "Mike is playing well, as simple as that. Of course, we'd always like to have a couple plays back, but I thought he did some good things."
Glennon said he thought the Bucs were in good shape after he hit Robert Herron with a 9-yard touchdown pass with 13:28 remaining in regulation to give Tampa Bay a 31-20 lead.
"You'd like to hope so," Glennon said. "But when we had that lead, I knew that [Brees] was going to rally back. That's the kind of player he is. He wasn't going to make another mistake. So, playing against the best, you're going to have to play all 60 minutes."
Glennon didn't get to play beyond 60 minutes as the Saints got the ball to start overtime and drove for a touchdown. But Glennon's play against the Saints and in last week's victory at Pittsburgh should put an answer to a big question:
Who's the starting quarterback when Josh McCown comes back from a thumb injury?
I don't think that's even a question anymore. The offense has looked far better in Glennon's two starts than it did in McCown's three starts, and Glennon has displayed a strong chemistry with top receiver Vincent Jackson, who caught eight passes for 144 yards Sunday.
The Bucs are 1-4. They're playing the rest of the season for the future. They might as well go with the quarterback of the future, especially since he's turned out to be the best quarterback in the present.
