Baker Mayfield will certainly have outside suitors in free agency, but the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are likely to try and run it back with the veteran signal-caller come free agency.
Mayfield was on a one-year, $4 million deal with the Bucs in 2023, and after one of the best years of his career, he’s due for a big payday. ESPN’s Matt Bowen released an extensive list of which teams he believes are the best fit for their top free agents, and he has the Bucs as Mayfield’s best fit this free agency.
Here’s what Bowen had to say about Mayfield:
Yeah, here’s another big-name Tampa Bay free agent returning, but it makes sense. Given Mayfield’s production over the second half of last season and some impressive playoff tape (two postseason games with over 300 passing yards), there will be free agent interest for the veteran quarterback. But in this new Tampa Bay system — which will fit his aggressive throwing mentality behind defined play-action concepts and schemed verticals — I think Mayfield could keep posting big numbers.
The Bucs clearly care about Mayfield — in fact, he’s the largest reason the team brought in offensive coordinator Liam Coen to replace Dave Canales, as Coen runs a very similar system and has worked with Coen before. Mayfield put up 28 touchdowns to just 10 picks and threw for over 4,000 yards in Dave Canales’ system, so if Coen can perform at that level or better, it’s possible that Mayfield could see some added production once again in 2024.
Additionally, stability may be something Mayfield is looking for at this point in his career. He played for three teams in 2022, and after enjoying his time with the Bucs in 2023, it’s possible he may take a deal slightly below market value to stay in Tampa Bay.
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