TAMPA, Fla. – Now that Baker Mayfield has signed his new deal to stay as the Bucs quarterback, he’s feeling confident that the Bucs can win not one but a couple of Super Bowls.
“It was the group that stuck together through all the highs and lows that made it so special for us,” Mayfield said at his press conference Wednesday. “I’m looking forward to push for a deeper playoff run. Obviously if it’s not a Super Bowl, one team is happy at the end. So, that’s the goal here. To try and win a couple, and I’m very thankful for this opportunity.”.
Mayfield’s contract is a three-year, $100 million deal with $50 million guaranteed. Bucs GM Jason Licht said that besides what Mayfield brings on the field, his leadership and moxie make the players around him want to play for him and, in turn, elevate their game.
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“We love his leadership,” Licht said. “We love his ability on the field, but his leadership and ability to rally the team, the city and the fanbase has been surreal.”
Mayfield played his best ball late in the season, leading a comeback to beat the Falcons in Week 14. A week later Mayfield threw for four touchdowns in a win over the Packers, In that game Mayfield earned a perfect passer rating. Not to forget his two touchdown passes in a win over the Jaguars at home in Week 16. In the wild-card playoff game against the Eagles, Mayfield fired three touchdown throws in a 32-9 win.
In the divisional round, the Bucs lost to the Lions, but Mayfield threw for 349 yards passing with three touchdowns and two picks. All in all, he showed the Bucs hierarchy that he could lead a team and win in the playoffs, and the Bucs didn’t want to let him go anywhere else, especially in the NFC.
“The group we had made it so special last year,” Mayfield said. “Made it a big reason why I wanted to come back here, knowing we have some of the same staff coming back, key pieces. We were close, made a good run there at the end. I don’t think any of our guys were satisfied.”
Bucs head coach Todd Bowles a year ago, as told by Licht, would come down to Licht’s office at least twice a day saying when are we gonna get Bake? Licht laughed and told him there are rules you know, but they were all on the same page that Mayfield was their guy and now he’ll be their guy for at least the next couple of years and maybe more.
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“His (Mayfield) mental toughness number 1,” Bowles said. “For a quarterback, there are very few great ones that’s not in the right system. You can be a good quarterback and be in the wrong system and some get thrown by the wayside. Some happen to find their niche and Baker found his niche. We found what worked well for him and we kinda played to those strengths.”
Mayfield put up career numbers in Tampa Bay, including his 28 touchdowns in the regular season. He continually praised the Bucs organization for how they handled things, saying that it was a matter of wanting to settle down after having bounced around. Cleveland, Carolina, and LA with the Rams and was really on his last chance to be a starter in the NFL coming to the Bucs.
“The last few years of my career, a lot of ups and downs, and just to be able to have Emily (his wife) by my side the whole time and see it through and have the opportunity to come here, it’s a place that knows how to win,” Mayfield said. “I obviously knew Coach Bowles coming into it, got to know Jason (Licht) pretty quickly, just knowing the staff and the key pieces that they had here, obviously a good look to try and sign here.”
Now that he’s got a second contract, Mayfield doesn’t have to prove anything to anyone except himself. He says there are things that he’s going to work on, such as getting together with the other veterans and teaching the young guys how to take their game to another level.
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