New Buccaneers OC raves about Baker Mayfield

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers continue to insist Baker Mayfield and Kyle Trask will compete for the starting quarterback job even though Mayfield seems to have a clear advantage heading into training camp. 

"I just like his presence," new Buccaneers offensive coordinator Dave Canales said about Mayfield on Wednesday, as shared by the JoeBucsFan website and Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times. "He just has such a great swag. You know, he steps into the huddle, he belongs. He comes right in here, he’ll light up the room. You know, he’s a good dude and he just knows how to connect with people. That’s what I’ve been most excited [about]. And then, of course, the game is never too big for him. The bullets start flying and he stays cool. So I love that about him." 

Perhaps it's no accident that Canales' words sound familiar to individuals who have followed Tampa Bay's quarterback situation since the club signed Mayfield to a one-year "prove it" contract in March. Ahead of this year's NFL Draft, former Buccaneers head coach and current senior advisor Bruce Arians admitted he has been a fan of Mayfield's "moxie" for years. 

Canales noted during Wednesday's news conference how Mayfield went from being the No. 1 overall pick of the 2018 NFL Draft and a playoff-game winner with the Cleveland Browns to a quarterback discarded by the Browns, Carolina Panthers and Los Angeles Rams. 

"He’s been told 'no' enough times where I can feel the hunger that he has for wanting to re-establish himself as a starter and to really have the type of career he envisioned, that the Browns envisioned for him, taking him No. 1 overall," Canales added about Mayfield. "But there is something in him right now where there’s like this release where he’s like, 'I know what I gotta do today, that’s good enough.' And so I can feel that from him. It’s not an anger or any type of resentment for what happened. It’s more like, 'Look at this cool opportunity.'" 

Mayfield reportedly attracted interest from the Baltimore Ravens this offseason but later said the chance to potentially replace the retired Tom Brady with Tampa Bay was "a perfect opportunity." 

Nobody within the Buccaneers will say it out loud, but Mayfield likely doesn't view Trask as much of a threat regarding the upcoming summer battle considering the 2021 second-round pick has thus far attempted nine career regular-season passes.