Dan Orlovsky Daniel John " Dan " Orlovsky ( born August 18 , 1983 ) is an American football quarterback for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League . The Detroit Lions drafted Orlovsky in the fifth round ( 145th overall ) of the 2005 NFL Draft . He played college football at the University of Connecticut . Orlovsky has also played for the Houston Texans and Indianapolis Colts . Early years . Born in Bridgeport , Connecticut , Orlovsky played high school football . " When I was younger , I would have garbage cans set up all around the yard , " Orlovsky recalled . " And I would have like 20 balls and just fire them into the cans . I really had nothing else to do back then . " Orlovsky attended Shelton High School and became the starting quarterback during his sophomore year . As a senior , he threw for 2 , 489 yards and 58 touchdowns as the Gaels went 12 - 0 , winning the state championship . His overall record as a high school quarterback was 28 - 4 . He earned All - American honors from Prep Football Report , SuperPrep and Prep Star , and was also named Connecticut all - state , Class LL MVP , the New Haven Register ' s Connecticut Player of the Year and winner of the McHugh Award . Despite offers from Purdue and Michigan State , Orlovsky committed to play at Connecticut , where he wanted the challenge of elevating the Huskies into a Big East contender . College career . Orlovsky became the starter during his freshman year when Keron Henry suffered a sprained knee . Orlovsky threw for 1 , 379 yards and nine touchdowns on 128 of 269 passing ( 47 . 6 percent ) while being intercepted 11 times . Starting every game as a sophomore , Orlovsky hit on 221 of 366 attempts ( 60 . 4 percent ) , with 19 touchdowns and 11 interceptions . His 2 , 488 yards passing rank fourth on the school ' s season - record list . As a junior , he ranked seventh in the nation in passing , hitting on 279 of 475 passes ( 58 . 7 percent ) for 3 , 485 yards , 33 touchdowns and 14 interceptions . His 33 scoring tosses ranked first in the NCAA Division I - A ranks . Orlovsky did not match his 2003 figures as a senior , but guided the team to victory in its inaugural bowl appearance . He gained 3 , 354 yards with 23 touchdowns and 15 interceptions on 288 of 456 throws ( 63 . 0 percent ) in 2004 . Orlovsky holds the school record for most pass completions ( 916 ) , pass attempts ( 1 , 567 ) , yards passing ( 10 , 706 ) , touchdown passes ( 84 ) , interceptions ( 51 ) , total plays ( 1 , 710 ) and total yards ( 10 , 421 ) . Orlovsky , along with head coach Randy Edsall , served as the " face " of the UConn football program durings the early 2000s . Orlovsky was the starting quarterback during the Huskies transitional period from Division I - AA football , to independent Division I team , to full fledged member of the Big East . Professional career . Detroit Lions . When Jeff Garcia went down with an injury in the ' 05 preseason , Orlovsky emerged as the Lions ' primary backup . He played in two regular season contests in 2005 , including the nationally - televised Thanksgiving Day game against the Atlanta Falcons . In the two contests combined , Orlovsky completed 7 - of - 17 passes for 63 yards , with no touchdowns or interceptions . Prior to the 2006 season the Lions traded Joey Harrington and released Jeff Garcia , while signing Jon Kitna and Josh McCown . Orlovsky spent the 2006 season as the third - string QB . Orlovsky was projected to be the second - string quarterback in 2007 because Drew Stanton , who was picked in the second round of the 2007 NFL Draft , was placed on injured reserve ; however , the Lions acquired J . T . O ' Sullivan , who bumped Orlovsky back to third on the depth chart . Orlovsky did not take a regular season snap in either 2006 or 2007 ; in 2008 , O ' Sullivan went to the San Francisco 49ers and emerged as the starting QB there . On September 15 against the Green Bay Packers , he finished the game , completing two of four attempts for six yards . Orlovsky made his first career NFL start on October 12 , 2008 , in a 12 - 10 Lions loss against the Minnesota Vikings . He completed 12 of 21 passes for 150 yards , with one touchdown and no turnovers . However , he inadvertently ran out of the back of his own end zone for a safety early in the first quarter , in what turned out to be the margin of victory . " When they started blowing the whistle , I was like , ' Did we false start , or were they offsides or something ? ' " Orlovsky said . " And I looked , and I was just like , ' You ' re an idiot . ' " Orlovsky also started the final game of the 2008 season , but was unable to lead his team to their first victory of the season ; the Lions finished 0 - 16 . Orlovsky announced his intention to explore the free agent market at the end of the 2008 season rather than accept a contract as a backup quarterback in Detroit . Houston Texans . He signed with the Houston Texans for a 3 year , 9 million dollar deal on March 1 , 2009 . He was beaten out by Rex Grossman for the backup quarterback position during the preseason , and served as the Texans number three quarterback . After the 2009 season , Grossman signed a one - year contract with the Washington Redskins , making Orlovsky the backup quarterback for the Texans . Indianapolis Colts . He signed with the Indianapolis Colts as a free agent on July 30 , 2011 . He was one of the final cuts as NFL teams trimmed their rosters to 53 . The Colts later resigned Orlovsky on September 27 , 2011 . He was named the starter over the benched Curtis Painter on November 30 , 2011 . The next week , Orlovsky went on to complete 30 of 37 passes , with 353 yards , 2 touchdowns and 1 interception , for a total passer rating of 113 . 1 in his first start as a Colt against the New England Patriots , in a close 31 - 24 loss . On December 18 , 2011 , Orlovsky and the Colts won their first game of the season ( after starting 0 - 13 ) against the Titans . Coincidentally , the last time the Colts won was also against the Titans in January of the previous season . This was Orlovsky ' s first official win as a starter in the NFL . On December 22 , 2011 , Orlovsky led the Colts on a 12 play , 78 yard drive in a comeback victory over the 10 - 4 Houston Texans with less than 2 minutes remaining in the game . Tampa Bay Buccaneers . On March 15 , 2012 , the Tampa Bay Buccaneers signed Orlovsky to a two - year - contract .