Baker Mayfield is in the final year of his contract, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ front office has a decision to make before the star quarterback hits free agency. The veteran found his footing in Tampa after a rough start to his career with the Cleveland Browns, after which he bounced around the league until the Bucs came calling. Now it remains to be seen if they’ll retain him after 2026.
Baker Mayfield’s Performance Last Season Raises Questions About His Future
The Bucs missed the playoffs this past season for the first time since Mayfield came to town. It was a strange season for the NFC South, with the top three teams, including Tampa, all finishing 8-9. The Buccaneers, however, narrowly lost the division race to the Carolina Panthers.
With Mayfield having turned 31 in April and being in the last season of his three-year, $100 million contract, the front office has to start thinking about the future under center. The quarterback undoubtedly has several good years left in him, and he has proven to be extremely resilient, as he hasn’t missed a single game since arriving in Tampa.
However, there are also some reasons to believe Mayfield might not be the man to take the Bucs to the promised land. Against a loaded NFC and an even stronger AFC, Tampa doesn’t seem like a powerhouse that can contend for a Super Bowl.
Former NFL scout John Middlekauff weighed in on the Buccaneers’ situation on “3 & OUT with John Middlekauff” regarding Mayfield, mentioning possible doubts as a core reason why the team shouldn’t rush into an extension.
“You can’t get into business with a quarterback — even if it’s team-friendly — in the NFL if you don’t think the guy is a top-10 quarterback,” Middlekauff said. “Baker has proven that when he’s on, he can be. Two years ago, he was excellent. Last year, he showed signs of, ‘If we’re paying this guy $45 million a year, we would immediately regret it.'”
Mayfield’s passing yardage totals, TD-INT ratio, and completion percentage all reached three-year lows in 2025. He also ranked 24th among quarterbacks in the league last season with a 73.4 impact score according to PFSN’s QB Impact Metric, hardly edging Jacoby Brissett, who went 1-11 as a starter.
“I think the No. 1 thing you can do whenever you have questions about anything is let it play out,” Middlekauff added. “Take a deep breath. Do not rush it. When you know, you know… Sometimes, re-evaluating your options is a healthy thing to do.”
BE AN NFL GM: PFSN’s Ultimate GM Simulator
With Mayfield under center last season, Tampa didn’t even have an edge against a losing division that sent an 8-9 team to the playoffs.
The veteran quarterback will have to strut his stuff if he still wants to lead the Bucs next offseason.
