Baker Mayfield and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are stalled in contract talks, and all eyes are on the quarterback after star defensive tackle Vita Vea requested a trade. Originally selected with the first-overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, Mayfield spent his early years as the starting quarterback for the Cleveland Browns. While he never established himself as an elite passer, he was a solid starter who guided the team to its first playoff win in forever in 2020. However, an injury-plagued 2021 led to Cleveland trading for Deshaun Watson as Mayfield joined the Carolina Panthers.
Following short stints with the Panthers and Los Angeles Rams, Baker Mayfield joined the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2023 and re-established himself as a starting-caliber quarterback. Over the past three seasons, the quarterback has completed 66.3% of his passes for 12,237 yards, 95 touchdowns, and 37 interceptions while guiding the Buccaneers to the playoffs on two separate occasions. Now entering the final year of his contract, both player and team are trying to work on an extension, but Mayfield is willing to bet on himself if he doesn’t receive a fair offer.
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler recently addressed the situation on SportsCenter and said Baker Mayfield isn’t afraid of the franchise tag.
“The market is 11 different quarterbacks make at least $50 million a year; Mayfield feels like he’s outplayed some of those players,” Fowler reported. “He’s got proof of concept in Tampa after three years, so it’s going to take some financial concessions for Tampa to get this done. Also, Mayfield, he’s not scared of the franchise tag. Like, if he were to play this out and they were to tag him and be around $47-48 million in 2027, that could be a route. This is a guy who’s bet on himself before, and he’s not afraid now.”
Baker Mayfield Is Willing to Play On Franchise Tag If Contract Talks Stall
Only time will tell what happens with the Baker Mayfield contract saga, but the Buccaneers only have so much money to go around. Vita Vea wants a new contract, and it’s hard to imagine a way that the Buccaneers can pay him and Mayfield while still fielding a competitive roster.
For what it’s worth, it didn’t work out the last time Baker Mayfield tried to bet on himself. Cleveland wanted to extend Mayfield following his playoff win in 2020, but the former first-round pick decided to play on his rookie deal in 2021 in hopes of earning a larger payday in the coming season. That clearly didn’t work, as it ultimately ended up being his final season in Cleveland. Only time will tell if history repeats itself, but right now, Mayfield and the Buccaneers appear to need each other and would benefit from an extension.
