New Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive coordinator really likes what he’s seeing from quarterback Baker Mayfield in organized team activities this month.
“There’s not many days, I don’t think, Baker wakes up and he doesn’t have a chip on his left shoulder,” Coen told reporters on Monday. “But there is definitely a feeling that this is his team and it’s OK to fail. It’s OK.”
“Go out there and let it rip and be yourself every single day no matter what because you’re going to be the guy and we believe in you. And I think that’s something that, ultimately, he just hasn’t really had the opportunity to have all that often in his career,” Coen continued.
Mayfield had many ups and downs before his arrival in Tampa last year. The former No. 1 pick in 2018 bounced around the league in 2022 between three teams as his time with the Cleveland Browns flamed out.
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Mayfield turned it all around and earned a three-year, $100 million contract this offseason after he put up 4,044 yards passing and 28 touchdowns in 2023. Coen, who joined the Buccaneers coaching staff this offseason, worked with Mayfield during the quarterback’s brief stint with the Los Angeles Rams in December 2023.
“So, you definitely feel a calming confidence. But he’s still the same guy. He’s out there when we get on the grass talking smack and getting after it and just having fun with the guys. And I think that’s ultimately what makes him a great leader, is because his best friends are the O-line,” Coen said.
Mayfield hangs out with the offensive linemen, and he took offensive line teammates on a trip after the season. The Buccaneers ranked No. 13 in the Pro Football Focus offensive line rankings for 2023.
Coen sees new offensive lineman Graham Barton, the Buccaneers’ top pick, as a significant addition to the trenches. A 6-foot-5, 313-pound lineman, Barton had a standout career at Duke before the Buccaneers took him with the No. 26 pick in the draft.
“Ton of diversity to his game…he is athletic, has a mean streak and plays the game the way it is supposed to be played,” Coen said.
Liam Coen Says Baker Mayfield’s Leadership Shines Through
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Coen is seeing Mayfield’s leadership play out in OTA meetings and practices of late.
“The atmosphere that we want to be able to establish in the meeting rooms is one of the players being the drivers of it,” Coen said. “And, yes, we are installing and teaching a new offense. But he knows a lot of these things already, he’s heard them, he’s repped them.”
“And so, him just taking it over — he has done a great job in the meeting-room setting of talking to some of the guys [and saying], ‘Hey man, make sure you’re here.’ And that’s what we’re trying to establish,” Coen added.
“And the confidence of throwing the football, I think, has been impressive thus far. We haven’t had a ton of balls hit the ground and he’s throwing it with a lot of confidence right now,” Coen concluded.
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Buccaneers OC Liam Coen Sends Strong Message to Baker Mayfield