Should the Buccaneers Extend Baker Mayfield Now?

There has been news circulating on social media that the Buccaneers want to work out an extension with Baker Mayfield. This isn’t exactly new news as this had been reported during the Combine. But I saw it had been going through the rounds on Twitter again, so I figured it was as good a time as any to talk about it. There has been some debate over whether or not the Bucs should pay the man or not, so that’s why I’m here.

On the side of not paying him, just look at last season. Or rather, how he ended it. Yes, injuries played a role in his decline, but at the end of the day, he was not playing great football. There are of course other factors at play regarding the less than stellar end, but Baker deserves his fair share of the blame. And even if his play didn’t drop off, I would be hesitant to pay him big QB money.

Even at his best, he is ultimately streaky. I don’t necessarily think that’s the worst thing in the world and he does usually make up for it (usually), but he has always seemed to run hot and cold. However, I am against paying a guy that has such extremes over $60 million. Now, there is no evidence that Baker is asking for that, but the current market suggests he could get that. Which has me a little worried.

No Better Option

With that said, the Bucs may be forced to sign him back regardless of the price. Unless the Bucs go full on tank, they won’t have access to great throwers of the football.

Here are some of the 2027 free agent QBs: Kyler Murray, Deshaun Watson (eww), Justin Fields, Mac Jones, so on so on. The best guy available is technically Matthew Stafford, but I find it hard to imagine he will leave the Rams except if he retires. Mac Jones is intriguing as he looked pretty good in relief of Purdy, but that’s still a risk. And as I already mentioned, I’m not sure they will be in a position to draft a guy. I know we’re not super high on this team, but they would likely have to be drafting top 5 to have a realistic shot of getting their successor. The Bucs may not be great in 2026, but I struggle to see this team as that bad.

At the end of the day, Baker Mayfield should be re-signed by the Bucs. I would prefer it to be a reasonable deal that lines up with his ability and not necessarily the market. Unless the Bucs know they will be in a position to draft someone, they will be hard-pressed to do better than him in 2027.