Getty The Buccaneers' Baker Mayfield (right) could be replaced by Russell Wilson should he leave Tampa.
Anyone watching Tampa Bay quarterback Baker Mayfield leading the Buccaneers past the Eagles on Monday night to earn his first playoff victory in three years by a robust 32-9 score might have thought that all questions about his future with the franchise were answered. Mayfield wants to stay with the Bucs and Tampa has every reason now to want him back. Except that there is one quarterback out there who could tempt them to look elsewhere—Russell Wilson of the Broncos.
That’s the assertion from veteran ESPN NFL insider Jeremy Fowler, who took a long, hard look at the future for Russell Wilson this week and found that there is the potential for some Buccaneers overlap. Depending, at least, on how things go with Mayfield.
Wrote Fowler: “Baker Mayfield is a free agent, and if Tampa Bay can’t reach a new deal with him, the Bucs would make a lot of sense for Wilson. Tampa offensive coordinator Dave Canales was on Seattle’s offensive staff throughout Wilson’s 10 years there, and the two maintained a close relationship. In Canales’ two years as Wilson’s quarterbacks coach, Wilson was efficient with 66 touchdowns to 12 interceptions.
“The Bucs and Mayfield are open to extension talks, so the Wilson discussion might be a moot point. But Wilson could be an intriguing option for them.”
Russell Wilson Has Connections to Bucs OC
All of that is true. It is worth noting, too, though, that despite Mayfield’s repeated assertions that he wans to stay in Tampa, there have not been formal talks about a contract extension, not yet at least. And with a number of would-be contenders in need of a quick quarterback upgrade—the Raiders, the Patriots, the Steelers, the Falcons, even Wilson and Canales’ old Seahawks team—a surprise suitor for Mayfield could emerge.
It’s not a sure thing that Mayfield will re-sign with the Buccaneers, then. That’s where Wilson could be, as Fowler put it, “an intriguing option.”
Much of that depends on what it will take to get Wilson. If the Broncos can’t find a trade partner and are forced to release Wilson, then Canales and the Buccaneers cold attempt to rehabilitate him much as they’ve done with Mayfield. And they could do it cheaply, giving them some leeway to address other major financial concerns, like contracts for Mike Evans, Antoine Winfield and Tristan Wirfs.
A trade for Wilson is far more complicated, though, and would require the Buccaneers to take on some significant portion of Wilson’s contract. As Fowler wrote, a trade “would be incredibly tough to pull off. Wilson’s contract is far from desirable, especially for teams that can just wait for Denver to release him.”
Buccaneers ‘Gravitate’ Toward Baker Mayfield
As for Mayfield, the win over the Eagles most likely was just another step in securing his Buccaneers future. There is a lot that would make Wilson a good fit in Tampa Bay, but it’s also true that the team has thrived off Mayfield’s positive energy and offbeat personality.
The more he wins, the deeper his ties to Tampa Bay and his Buccaneers teammates seem to get.
“He didn’t come in here as the No.1 pick, expecting to carry the team, with all the expectations on his shoulders,” Buccaneers coach Todd Bowles said. “We just asked him to drive the car. The car was built. We just asked him to drive it. We didn’t ask him to put in a new engine. We wanted him to be himself, because his personality would expand upon the team and then they would see him for who he is and not for who anyone else was. Then, they would gravitate toward him faster, and that’s exactly what he did.”