What Sean McVay learned about Buccaneers' Baker Mayfield during Rams stint

After the Cleveland Browns and Carolina Panthers both discarded Baker Mayfield in 2022, the quarterback had a brief stint with the Los Angeles Rams. 

Mayfield has since led the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to two division titles and will be under center when the 6-4 Buccaneers face the 8-2 Rams on "Sunday Night Football" this weekend. Per Myles Simmons of Pro Football Talk, Rams head coach Sean McVay recently discussed Mayfield's brief tenure with the team. 

How Baker Mayfield impressed Sean McVay while with Rams

"He’s got a lot of resilience," McVay said about Mayfield. "He’s got a lot of natural leadership traits. I just remember a guy that had a pretty impressive mental stamina over a small period of time to absorb a lot of information. It’s one thing to absorb it. It’s a totally different thing to be able to bring it to life when the enemy has a say. It was impressive. I think when you watch what he’s done and who he is, I think it’s probably more on par for what we expect of Baker than the outlier when you look at the totality of everything he’s done."

The Rams reportedly were the only team to submit a waiver claim for Mayfield in December 2022 after the Panthers released him. Days after joining the Rams, he led a remarkable 98-yard game-winning drive against the Las Vegas Raiders. 

Overall, Mayfield completed 82 of 129 passes (63.6%) for 850 yards, with four touchdowns and two interceptions over four starts and five games for the Rams. The first overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft has since said he enjoyed a much-needed career reset while working with McVay.

What Baker Mayfield brought to Rams late in 2022 season

"I thought he brought a spark," McVay added about Mayfield's time with the Rams. "He just has a great charisma and presence. ...I think when you have certain guys that are innately thrust into leadership positions, whether that be the quarterback or the green dot on defense, and those guys have the things you’re looking for, they naturally elevate the spaces that they’re in and the people that they’re around. That’s what guys like [Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford] and Baker do."

As of Tuesday afternoon, ESPN BET had the Rams as seven-point favorites over the Mayfield-led Buccaneers. At that same time, DraftKings Sportsbook had Stafford as the betting favorite at +135 odds to win the 2025 Most Valuable Player Award.