Baker Mayfield And His Rise To The Upper Level Of NFL Quarterbacks
July 20th, 2025
Image nearly repaired.
When the Bucs signed free agent, journeyman Baker Mayfield, the former No. 1 overall pick, Joe typed that if Mayfield was to return to the level where folks referred to him as a top quarterback, it would take two or three years of stellar play to make folks forget his injury-plagued seasons in Cleveland or his play when he bottomed out in Carolina.
It seems that timeline is beginning to come through, but not fully.
Former NFL shot-caller Mike Tannenbaum said on BSPN that Mayfield is better than Matt Stafford, who some believe is a Hall of Famer.
Tannenbaum’s colleague, good guy Kevin Clark, scoffed at Tannenbaum’s assertion.
Then, per Jeremy Fowler of BSPN, in his annual Top-10 survey at every position selected by a blue ribbon of panel of some 70 NFL suits, scouts and coaches, Mayfield was picked as the No. 10 quarterback.
That was on the money. Mayfield leads all quarterbacks with the most touchdown passes thrown the past two seasons. Also, Mayfield averages two touchdown passes a game with the Bucs. Impressive.
Two factors hold back the public perception of Mayfield, Joe believes. The first losing nationally-televised games. When the world is watching the Bucs, Mayfield and the Bucs fade. And it would help Mayfield’s rizz if he could take the Bucs on a long run.
As a starting quarterback with the Bucs, Mayfield is 1-7 in night games. That’s terrible.
Win night games and, more importantly, navigate the Bucs to more playoff wins and the two-to-three-year probation to repair Mayfield’s public perception will be completed.
July 20th, 2025 at 8:55 am
He has thrown 69 TDs in his 34 games with us
But he’s also thrown 26 INTS in 34 games
It’s the interceptions that’s keeping him from being a Top QB in the NFL. Ball security is a major part of a QB stat sheet
And also it’s the timing of his TDs, crunch time or garbage time
I think that he needs to cut back on the INTS
And make more big time plays when the game is on the line
That will get him a hefty payday, and more respect
July 20th, 2025 at 9:04 am
Love Baker, and also night games scare me. Arians had night practices before the night games, and that was also during COVID with no fans at the games. Maybe they could revisit it and have fans in the stands during one of the practices beforehand.
July 20th, 2025 at 9:12 am
Considering the Browns and Panthers organizations, can we even count them?
July 20th, 2025 at 9:12 am
Where are the super bowl rings? Stafford has one. Mahomes has too many. Not good enough.
July 20th, 2025 at 9:37 am
Dude, nobody ever has said anything about Baker being better than Mahomes.
July 20th, 2025 at 9:59 am
Garbage time can production can occur when up big or down big early in games. I can think of only 3 games last season when that happened. Against the the Ravens when he did get some late yardage and an extra touchdown. Against the Panthers when they were up big and the stats were padded a bit. And finally against the Broncos when they were down big and couldn’t get anything going period. So enough with the insinuation of garbage time production.
July 20th, 2025 at 12:19 pm
per Jeremy Fowler of BSPN, in his annual Top-10 survey at every position selected by a blue ribbon of panel of some 70 NFL suits, scouts and coaches.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Joe, to your knowledge are any Bucs in that group of 70?
July 20th, 2025 at 12:54 pm
I would like to see the Bucs have prime time practices at Ray Jay. They could invite some fans too. They obviously need to practice for prime time.
July 20th, 2025 at 12:57 pm
The picks aren’t great but Mahomes threw 15 in a recent season and his status as a top QB isn’t in jeopardy. Baker is more consistent season to season with turnovers but we take the good with the bad, it’s certainly been more good.
July 20th, 2025 at 1:15 pm
Baker is a very good QB, but he’s also benefitting greatly by being surrounded by an excellent offense & quality coaches who bring out the best in him. It all fits together, and when it does it’s a beautiful thing.
There are 4 QBs in today’s NFL who shined in 2024 IMO MUCH more-so than they did in their earlier years.
o Baker Mayfield (Bucs): Record 10-7 … Completion 71.4% (407 of 570) … 41 TDs … 16 INTs … 4500 Yards … 40 sacks
o Geno Smith (Seahawks): Record 10-7 … Completion 70.4% (407 of 578) … 21 TDs … 15 INTs … 4320 Yards … 50 sacks
o Sam Darnold (Vikings): Record 14-3 … Completion 66.2% (361 of 545) … 35 TDs … 12 INTs … 4319 Yards … 48 sacks
o Jared Goff (Lions): Record 15-2 … Completion 72.4% (390 of 539) … 37 TDs … 12 INTs … 4629 Yards … 31 sacks
BIG improvements for all 4 of them in 2024; it shows in the stats. And I contend that the reason they did so well IN 2024 is because everything fit together so nicely for them. I wouldn’t call them ‘reclamation projects’ by any means (they’re 1st & 2nd Rnd draft picks who initially went to bad teams), but they’re each doing MUCH BETTER in their current situation than they did in past situations. Their current teams ‘fit’ them very well, although I personally wouldn’t call any of them ‘franchise QBs’.
One thing that many overlook is that the quality of their DEFENSE also plays a huge role in their final stats. Example: The 2 teams with the best records (Lions & Vikings) also had the best defense rankings (#7 & #5 respectively) AND had the best Turnover Differentials (PLUS 9 & PLUS 12 respectively). Bucs & Seahawks had middle-of-the-road defenses (#16 & #11 respectively), as well as NEGATIVE Turnover Differentials (MINUS 5 & MINUS 6 respectively).
July 20th, 2025 at 1:35 pm
BM int rate is 0.76 which is better than the average that Google shows as 0.81
July 20th, 2025 at 2:49 pm
If Baker were also DC, maybe his prime time W/L record would improve. His current DC and HC have the same prime time W/L record and Baker has played well enough to win in at least 4 of those.
Todd.
July 20th, 2025 at 2:49 pm
This doesn’t mean nothing if he can’t close out or win playoff games when those games are put in his hands late in the 4th quarter.
July 20th, 2025 at 4:11 pm
Not fair to put Baker or Goff in that category of late bloomers with Darnold and Geno Smith. Baker had 2 great years with the Browns in 2018 and 2020 starting in 2018 in the worst possible situation. At least Goff started with Sean McVay. Baker had Hue Jackson and Freddie Kitchens his first two years on a team that went 1-31 the 2 years prior to his arrival. Geno and Darnold had horrible situations also but the difference is they did almost nothing in their first 4 years in the league.
July 20th, 2025 at 4:50 pm
People like to act like Baker didn’t beat Mahomes and Kansas City in the playoffs of the 2020 season. He did beat them with the previously worst team probably in NFL history. Everyone knows Baker beat him. The final score doesn’t relay that because of a horrendous intentional no call that changed the final score but you can believe BM6 beat PM15 in the Divisional Round of the playoffs on January 17, 2021 and the referees know it. And if the refs would have done their job it would have been Cleveland and Baker in the superbowl that year. And no quarterback in history has ever taken a team that bad within 3 years to a superbowl. It was stolen and that’s a fact. And you haters say Baker can’t finish. What a joke.
July 20th, 2025 at 5:01 pm
Oscar … The point was that all 4 of them had much better years in 2024 than they’d previously had; not trying to compare Baker with Goff or anyone else. Baker’s best year PRIOR was in 2020 with the Browns as you mentioned …
o Record 11-5 … Completion 62.8% (305 of 486) … 26 TDs … 8 INTs … 3563 Yards … 26 sacks
Compare that to his 2024 performance withh the Bucs …
o Record 10-7 … Completion 71.4% (407 of 570) … 41 TDs … 16 INTs … 4500 Yards … 40 sacks
He had good teams around him both years IMO, but our 2024 team definitely allowed him to perform at a higher level.
July 20th, 2025 at 6:28 pm
I googled the following.
“A franchise quarterback is an NFL player at the quarterback position who is considered good enough that a team can build their entire franchise around him, both on and off the field. He is a player around whom the team’s offensive strategy is built, and his presence elevates the performance of the entire team. Essentially, he’s a player the team is confident can lead them to success, including potentially winning a Super Bowl.”
In my mind Baker fits this definition. This season gives Baker the opportunity to quiet his critics.
July 20th, 2025 at 7:09 pm
Tom Brady 1st 7 full NFL seasons as a starting QB INT’s=86
Baker Mayfield 1st 7 full NFL seasons as a starting QB INT’s=90
Get over it.
July 20th, 2025 at 10:53 pm
With all due respect DR, taken in its entirety, your post did point out that the four achieved that success last year due to their situation with surrounding talent and quality coaching etc, implying that it was imperative to their success and without it they would not have succeeded. Also you made the point that you did not consider any of them to be of franchise quality thus clumping them all together.
I was pointing out that Baker was a cut above the others because of what he accomplished with the stinky Browns. I won’t go into the details again. I’ll let Gipper and Davyboy follow up with that. Baker proved he could be a franchise qb with the Browns and has removed all doubt with the Bucs in my opinion.
July 21st, 2025 at 1:05 am
Joe has written all about that last week. Every day, sometimes multiple times a day.