The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are continuing life after Tom Brady, which means they need a new quarterback. According to Ian Rapoport and Mike Garafolo, they are expected to target veteran QB Baker Mayfield to fill that spot once free agency begins.
Mayfield and his old team, the Cleveland Browns, parted ways after the 2021 season, with the Browns trading him for the Carolina Panthers. He spent the first 12 weeks of the 2022 season with the Panthers, appearing in seven games and starting six. He only won one of those starts and was placed on waivers, where he was picked up by the Los Angeles Rams. He spent the rest of the season with LA, winning just one of his four starts. Overall, the 27-year-old went 2-8 as a starter, and after a disastrous 2021, it looked like his days as a touring backup QB were closing in at speed.
The Bucs might throw him a lifeline. Whoever signs Mayfield next will be his fourth club in three years, and he hasn’t even played near Peak Mayfield in at least that long time. There may not be many starting opportunities for him. At least in Tampa, he would have a chance to compete against 25-year-old Kyle Trask for the job. And he gets another chance (his third) to try and rediscover his form and revive his career.
Is that chance worth the possibility of being known as “Tom Brady’s replacement?” It’s an opportunity to start in the NFL, so probably, but with the opening of a free agency on Wednesday, we’ll soon know for sure.
