The Tampa Bay Buccaneers started the season 6-2, and Baker Mayfield looked like a player who was going to garner consideration for the league’s MVP. Since that time, the Bucs have been in a tailspin. They’ve gone 1-7, but still have a chance to win the NFC South with a win over the Carolina Panthers on Saturday.
Part of the reason the Bucs have struggled is due to their offense, and one NFL analyst thinks he’s found a big reason why.
NFL Analyst Identifies Baker Mayfield’s Fatal Flaw
Greg Cosell has been analyzing football for more than 20 years. He is one of the most respected minds in football and made his appearance on the popular “Ross Tucker Podcast” to discuss various topics.
One of the topics discussed this week was Mayfield and the Buccaneers. Tampa Bay looked to be a shoo-in to be not just the winner of the NFC South, but a potential Super Bowl contender.
The Buccaneers were 6-2 and defending division champions after winning the division in 2024 for the fourth consecutive time. The offense was explosive with Mike Evans and Chris Godwin both working their way back to form alongside rookie sensation Emeka Egbuka.
Since starting 6-2, however, the Bucs offense has gone into the tank. They’re 1-7 since starting 6-2, and have lost four games in a row leading into Saturday’s showdown against the Panthers with a playoff spot on the line.
In those games, the Bucs have topped 20 total points just once. A 29-28 loss to the Atlanta Falcons on December 11.
Mayfield has struggled during that stretch as well. He’s thrown for more than 200 yards just twice in the four games, with 346 coming against the Dolphins, but it only led to 17 points.
He’s thrown six touchdowns and five interceptions in those four games, which helped double his season total of picks on the year.
With Tampa Bay’s offense largely stuck in neutral, Cosell had some thoughts on what ails their offense.
“You know, it’s always hard to know Ross, what’s in a quarterback’s head when he plays,” Cosell said.
“For the first part of the season, Baker Mayfield was as decisive as any quarterback in the league. He seems to know exactly where he wants to go with the football. He had the right reads and the right throws.
“The thing that really stands out to me about Baker is he just is NOT decisive.”@GregCosell with a concerning takeaway about Baker Mayfield:@GameTime pic.twitter.com/ClU0eRqLSR
— Ross Tucker Podcast (@RossTuckerPod) January 1, 2026
“It’s always easy to say you’re missing your good players, but something I learned early on as you evaluated quarterbacks, you have to isolate him,” continued Cosell.
“Obviously, if you’re going to throw great recievers one on one he makes a catch. The thing that stands out to me about Baker, again I’m not in his head, it’s that he’s just not decisive.”
Mayfield will take the field on Sunday night, trying to right some of the wrongs of the last two months and attempt to get the Buccaneers into the playoffs. The last time these two teams met, Carolina won 23-20 with Mayfield throwing an interception in the final moments of the game.
