Baker Mayfield entered the offseason hoping to secure a long-term extension with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but alas, they never reached common ground.
Mayfield has publicly declared he felt disrespected by Tampa Bay’s short-term proposal, which he said landed well below the $50 million-plus he was seeking.
That uncertainty immediately caught the attention of New York Giants legend Tiki Barber, who believes the New York Jets should monitor the situation closely instead of waiting another year for answers at quarterback.
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The Jets are heading into the season relying on veteran Geno Smith and Cade Klubnik. Smith will lead the offense as QB1, but the 35-year-old signed a one-year contract, making him more of a short-term rental than a franchise cornerstone.
When the season is done, the Jets could find themselves back in the quarterback market. And that’s why Barber feels the Jets should go all-in for Mayfield.
“The Jets are in danger of getting into that spiral where you’re not winning,” Barber said on WFAN Sports Radio.
“You don’t have a quarterback, and maybe you draft a young kid. But what’s the coaching staff going to look like for that young kid? They’re in danger right now of falling deeper, because they’ve been in it for already a decade and a half, into this crazy spiral that’s going to disrupt them forever.
“I saw this Baker Mayfield situation developing, and you start to hear some of the words coming from the Bucs’ side,” Barber noted. “Then you hear the disgruntledness from Baker’s side. And if I’m a team that’s quarterback-needy and desperate, that’s an opportunity.”
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For the Jets, the opportunity becomes easier, as NFL Network insider Mike Garafolo explained exactly why Mayfield feels “disrespected” by Tampa Bay.
“They offered him two, and my understanding is there were multiple offers from the Buccaneers that were over $50 million,” Garafolo said. “Now, you could say, as a quarterback, I deserve a five-year extension, like we’ve seen franchise quarterbacks get, and not only two years. And maybe that’s the part of it that he felt disrespected over.”
Mayfield himself also confirmed that feeling during a conversation with ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler.
The quarterback revealed Tampa Bay offered only a two-year extension and admitted the lack of a long-term commitment from the franchise he has represented for the last three seasons was “probably the most disappointing” part.
Now, if the Jets make a move, it’ll improve their offense massively. They already have an exciting supporting cast with Breece Hall, Garrett Wilson, first-round picks Omar Cooper Jr. and Kenyon Sadiq.
They also have one of the NFL’s youngest offensive lines, anchored by Olu Fashanu and Armand Membou. Adding Mayfield only raises the ceiling, but there would still be work left to be done.
However, Mayfield had an uneven 2025 campaign. He finished with a 90.6 passer rating, 3,693 passing yards, 26 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions across 17 games. PFN’s QB Impact Metric ranked him 22nd among league quarterbacks.
But a team willing to value him properly could help Mayfield rediscover a higher ceiling.
