TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) – As soon as Tom Brady announced he was retiring “for good,” rumors swirled that the Buccaneers could possibly name Baker Mayfield as their next QB1.
On Wednesday, the rumors were laid to rest after ESPN’s Senior NFL Insider Adam Schefter reported that the Bucs reached a one-year agreement with the former Rams quarterback.
According to Schefter, the former No. 1 overall pick’s deal is worth up to $8.5 million.
With that, the Buccaneers now have two quarterbacks under contract for 2023 – Mayfield and Kyle Trask. Trask looked to be the promising starter for the upcoming season, considering the fact he worked alongside Brady for the three years he was in Tampa.
But now that the Bucs have their quarterback, it’s time to start building weapons around him.
In recent weeks, the team released veteran running back Leonard Fournette, tight end Cameron Brate, left tackle Donovan Smith, and traded Shaq Mason in an attempt to alleviate cap space.
Although Mayfield spent the remainder of last season with the Los Angeles Rams, he’s knowledgeable when it comes to the NFC, which could be beneficial for Tampa Bay and new offensive coordinator Dave Canales, who came from the Seattle Seahawks.
Baker joined the Rams after they claimed him off waivers on Dec. 6, 2022, but he began the season with the Carolina Panthers.
The 27-year-old started the 2022 season with the Panthers after they acquired him in a trade with the Cleveland Browns last summer. He completed 119 of 206 pass attempts for 1,313 yards with six touchdowns against six interceptions while starting in six of the seven games he played in.
However, during the first matchup between the Panthers and Buccaneers, Mayfield was injured and sat out during the game.
The Cleveland Browns drafted the former Heisman Trophy winner in the 2018 NFL Draft. During the four seasons he spent in Cleveland, he completed 1,185 of 1,924 pass attempts for 14,125 yards with 92 touchdowns and only had 56 interceptions.
During his rookie season, Mayfield set the Browns franchise single-season record for passing yards per game with 266.1.
