Bruce Arians: O.J. Howard's eyes should ‘light up' given Tom Brady's tight end history

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Could Tampa Bay Buccaneers tight end O.J. Howard's breakout season finally come in 2020?

Now that Tom Brady is the starting quarterback of the Buccaneers, the odds of Howard fulfilling his potential are pretty good.

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We all know Brady loves throwing to tight ends, and his connection with future Hall of Famer Rob Gronkowski with the New England Patriots was legendary. Brady had an astounding 129.6 passer rating and 78 touchdown passes when targeting Gronkowski in the regular season from 2010 through the tight end's retirement following the 2018 campaign.

It's going to take time for Brady and Howard to build a strong on-field chemistry, but the 42-year-old quarterback's extraordinary success throwing to tight ends should make the ex-Alabama star very excited and motivated ahead of the new season.

"I think anytime you have a quarterback come in that has thrown a bunch of touchdowns to tight ends your eyes light up," Tampa Bay head coach Bruce Arians said this week in a conference call, per Scott Smith of Buccaneers.com. "[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 came into the league with a lot of fanfare after the Bucs selected him 19th overall in the first round of the 2017 NFL Draft. He was a very productive player for Nick Saban's Alabama Crimson Tide, with whom he won the 2016 College Football Playoff National Championship.

Howard had two fairly productive seasons to begin his pro career. He tallied 60 receptions for 997 yards and 11 touchdowns combined over those two years. The 25-year-old tight end was primed for a breakout in 2019, but it never happened. Howard caught 34 passes for 459 yards and only one touchdown in 14 games. It was a pretty disappointing performance, especially for a tight end on a team that led the league in passing yards and ranked second in passing touchdowns.

Brady's previous success throwing to tight ends does bode well for Howard entering the 2020 season, though. He's likely to set another career-high in targets, and his touchdown total should increase as well. Fantasy football owners shouldn't be shy about making Howard one of their top tight end targets once drafts commence.

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