Baker Mayfield’s career resurrection in 2023 with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers surprised many. He signed a three-year, $100 million extension in March 2024 and followed with an even better 2024 campaign.
He will be a free agent next year, but unfortunately, he is coming off a poor season affected by injuries. The Buccaneers are expected to give Mayfield an extension before the start of the season, but one analyst believes the NFC South team should not rush to the decision.
Buccaneers Should Wait Before Giving Baker Mayfield a New Contract
Last year, the Buccaneers started 6-2 with Mayfield playing MVP-caliber football, but a non-throwing shoulder injury in Week 12 against the Los Angeles Rams derailed everything. Tampa Bay stumbled to 8-9 and missed the playoffs. The 31-year-old quarterback threw 8 interceptions over the final 7 games after throwing just 3 interceptions through the first 10 games of the season.
In a segment on PFSN’s “Football Debate Club,” analyst Alex Kennedy discussed Mayfield’s contract situation, and he doesn’t want the Buccaneers to pay the quarterback early.
“I don’t think they should pay him right now,” Kennedy said. “In recent years, the Bucs have a history of paying guys too early. They gave Todd Bowles an extension last year, and it screwed them over when they potentially wanted to move on this offseason. They did it with Zyon McCollum, they did it with Antoine Winfield, and these are contracts that don’t look very good right now.”
“I don’t think there’s a reason to bid against yourself. In a year, if he has a great season without Mike Evans, then sure, pay him,” Kennedy added. “But the second half of last year was really rough. He was being talked about as an MVP candidate in the first half of the year, but by the end of the year, he fell to 24th in our PFSN QB Impact Metric because the second half was so bad. Injuries were part of that, but I don’t think you need to rush and do this now, especially when next year’s draft is loaded with QBs. Keep your flexibility.”
Mayfield’s 2025 collapse is quite similar to what happened with him in Cleveland in 2021, when he tore his labrum and fractured his humerus early in the year but played through the injuries all season. Buccaneers legend Lavonte David, who recently retired, also confirmed Mayfield battled multiple injuries last year, including oblique, shoulder, ankle, and knee issues that clearly affected his play.
According to PFSN’s Offense Impact Metric, the Buccaneers’ offense ranked 21st in the league last season, a steep drop from 2024, when they ranked third.
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Waiting a year won’t cost Tampa Bay significant money, as Lamar Jackson is the only quarterback expected to reset the market with his new contract. It won’t impact Mayfield as the two quarterbacks are on completely different tiers.
Evans’ departure provides the perfect setup for Mayfield’s evaluation. If the quarterback thrives, then Tampa Bay pays more but gets certainty. If he struggles, they save money and explore the 2027 quarterback draft class, which is expected to be much stronger than this year’s.
