Getty Baker Mayfield of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
He wasn’t perfect. But going against Jacksonville on Sunday, Baker Mayfield of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers did not really need to be, not with Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence struggling with two interceptions and replaced by C.J. Beathard because of injury. Mayfield had 283 yards passing, two touchdowns and a 116.7 rating — not the perfect 158.3 he had in Week 15 against Green Bay, but not bad, either.
What matters is that Tampa Bay has managed to stay afloat all these weeks, surviving a stretch of six losses in seven games before rallying to win four straight and pull themselves to 8-7 with a chance to clinch the division if they can beat New Orleans at home in Week 17.
And they’ve managed to do that in large part because of a guy who was having a hard time getting a job after cycling through three teams last year: Baker Mayfield.
What’s been remarkable about Mayfield’s situation, though, is that he is careening toward free agency with a price tag that is constantly on the rise. Rather than jumping on Mayfield early and getting him locked up to a long-term deal, the Buccaneers have made the decision to leave his next contract to the offseason.
The Bucs have not approached Mayfield about an extension. That is a surprise given Mayfield’s performance.
Baker Mayfield Is ‘Different’: Todd Bowles
On December 25, Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles was asked about Mayfield’s ability to connect with the Bucs’ younger players. But Bowles said age does not really matter with the 28-year-old Mayfield — relentless enthusiasm does.
“I think he’s relatable because he’s different and I think we have a different team. I think we needed to go a different way,” Bowles said. “It’s worked out for us. The attitude that he brought in, I think would be infectious on a young or an older team. I think that’s just who he is.”
That is not a knock on last year’s quarterback, of course, a guy who happens to be the greatest to ever play the position, Tom Brady. But Brady is a demanding veteran who was 45 years old last season. He was easily aggravated by mistakes and poor play and was unafraid of letting teammates know it.
When Bowles says Mayfield is “different” he means that Mayfield is a tireless optimist. Even as the Buccaneers’ season was battered within a thread when they fell to 4-7, Mayfield always held out a positive message, a feeling that success is just around the corner.
It helps that Mayfield has been one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL in the last four weeks, going 4-0 with 252.2 yards per game, plus 9 touchdowns against only 1 interception.
“That part is not that big of a deal, but the leadership he’s shown and the way we’ve tried to change the team around has been outstanding,” Bowles said. “He leads the veterans, as well – he sits with the offense and the defense. He really brought camaraderie and chemistry together in the offseason, as well as summer training camp, to have these guys on the same page so that when we hit hard times, we wouldn’t panic.”
Buccaneers Free Agency Remains a Question
One thing that Baker Mayfield has repeatedly preached is the need for the Buccaneers to remain in the moment and not get ahead of themselves. It’s a nice idea, but when it comes to Mayfield, his recent play has much of the NFL world wondering where he will play next.
He has earned a major raise of the $4 million for which he signed with the Bucs last offseason. He’s been clear that he would like that raise to come from Tampa — a team facing a salary-cap crunch in 2024. But the extension has not yet been put on the table.
“I would love to be here. It’s a great city, great group of guys, great organization, but winning ball games takes care of that, so we’ll have that discussion after the year,” Mayfield said, per Laine.