Getty Baker Mayfield took his share of hits in Sunday's loss.
Things only looked worse as Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield took a shot to the ribs late in a 23-13 loss to the New Orleans Saints.
Mayfield endured the hit during a two-point conversion attempt. He returned but threw an interception on the second two-point attempt, which came about because of a penalty on the first try.
“Ribs don’t feel too great right now,” Mayfield told reporters after the game. “X-rays as of right now are negative, so that’s good but do some more exams to see what’s really bugging me but don’t have anything right now besides just sore.”
“It was one of those late scramble plays that, you know, last second throwing the ball to Chris [Godwin] obviously, and, yeah they’re going to take hits,” Mayfield added. “They’re a physical team. They played that way today.”
Don’t know the status of QB Baker Mayfield, who finished the game but looked VERY sore coming off the field after the roughing the passer penalty.
Tampa Bay didn’t score until 7:50 remaining in the fourth quarter amid a 20-0 deficit. The Buccaneers lost the time of possession and the turnover battles along the way.
“They hit us right in the mouth from the get-go, so … not exactly the mentality that we wanted to come out with,” Mayfield said. “[We] needed to be the more physical team, and we weren’t today.”
Baker Mayfield Explains Offensive Woes, Turnovers
Tampa Bay committed four turnovers and went 2-8 on third downs — a recipe for disaster.
“I think when we look back at the tape, a lot of little things and the things we were doing well, we didn’t today,” Mayfield said. “And it starts … timing on some of the pass game stuff up front in the run game. Like I said, they were more physical today and they threw us off our tempo.”
The Buccaneers punted on three of the first half drives, and Mayfield threw an interception. It left the Buccaneers in a 17-0 hole at the break.
“I got to give Trey [Palmer] a better chance to run under it,” Mayfield said about the first pick. “One-on-one ball. Alontae Taylor made a [expletive] of a play to be honest with you.”
Alontae Taylor with his first-career pick!
It got worse in the second half as Palmer and running back Rachaad White fumbled plus a second pick by Mayfield. The Saints scored only three points off of those turnovers, but the Buccaneers offense remained stagnant most of the second half with another two punts.
“Just a horrible throw. Didn’t get my feet over to the right side,” Mayfield said about the second pick. “I think I’ll see the footwork on that when I watch the film and see that was probably the main issue. And then we just got to take care of it.”
Baker Mayfield: ‘I Wouldn’t Say That’
After winning four straight games, the Buccaneers didn’t look like the team that hadn’t lost since November. Trying to explain the drop off, Mayfield addressed the presumed lack of urgency with the NFC South on the line this Sunday and next.
“I wouldn’t say that, ” Mayfield said. “I think we prepared great all week. I think mentality-wise, preparation … we were great. We just didn’t come out and bring it to Sunday. Didn’t translate and so can’t have that.”
“Got to be able to show up when we need it. But luckily, we have one more game to seal this thing, and once again, backs against the wall, so somewhere we’ve been before and we got to get it fixed and move forward,” Mayfield added.
The Buccaneers get another shot at the division title against the Carolina Panthers in Week 18.