Buccaneers Will Look To Extend Baker Mayfield This Offseason

The former No. 1 pick is entering the final year of his contract in 2026 and is scheduled to make $28 million. He’s scheduled to be an unrestricted free agent in 2027. 

Howe notes it will be interesting to see the value the two sides come up with. Mayfield’s last deal was for three years and $100 million, which was considered middle-class relative to the quarterback market as a whole. 

With the salary cap going up and Mayfield having the best stretch of his career in Tampa, it’s unlikely the Buccaneers will be able to get as strong of a bargain. Howe notes $50 million a year is probably the floor and Mayfield’s reps will have a strong case for a lot more. 

Mayfield, 30, was drafted by the Browns with the No. 1 overall pick out of Oklahoma in 2018. He played out the fourth year of a four-year, $32.68 million rookie deal that included a $21.85 million signing bonus. 

The Browns exercised Mayfield’s fifth-year option, which would have cost Cleveland $18.858 million fully guaranteed in 2022. However, Cleveland traded Mayfield to the Panthers in exchange for a conditional 2024 fourth-round draft pick. 

Cleveland agreed to cover $10.5 million of Mayfield’s salary, with the Panthers paying out the rest. However, Carolina cut Mayfield during the season, and he was claimed off waivers by the Rams, finishing out his contract in Los Angeles.

Mayfield signed a one-year deal with Tampa Bay worth up to $8.5 million for the 2023 season before signing a three-year, $100 million contract with the Buccaneers in 2024.

Tampa Bay added $30 million in guarantees to Mayfield’s contract for the 2026 season. 

In 2025, Mayfield appeared in all 17 games for the Buccaneers and completed 63.2 percent of his pass attempts for 3,693 yards, 26 touchdowns and 11 interceptions, along with 55 carries for 382 yards rushing and another touchdown.

We’ll have more on Mayfield as the news is available.