Did Baker Mayfield Need More Time To Heal?
November 11th, 2025
Is Baker Mayfield hurt?
The state of Baker Mayfield’s dangerous scrambling ability boils down to four things, maybe a little of all four.
* Baker Mayfield is still dinged up. The bye week, while it may have helped, wasn’t enough time off to heal fully.
* Defenses are spying Mayfield so much that with Emeka Egbuka basically being the only weapon teams fear, teams have decided to make sure Mayfield cannot hurt them with his legs.
* The Lions exposed something with the Bucs offense. The NFL is a copycat league and the slimy Saints and Patriots saw what the Lions did and have attacked the Bucs the same way.
* With so many injuries, Bucs coaches decided the team cannot survive Mayfield going down. So they are leaning on him not to run. (As Bucco Bruce Arians said recently, “If you put a quarterback in harm’s way, harm is coming, baby.”)
Yesterday, Bucs coach Todd Bowles was asked if Mayfield is still injured. Bowles was asked to comment on a in-game CBS report that claimed Mayfield told the Patriots-Bucs announcing crew that he was playing at 50 percent health before the bye week.
Bowles basically tap-danced around the question without denying it.
“No. I think in the middle of the season right now, everybody is playing with something,” Bowles said. “Everybody is playing with something. So, we just have to make sure we keep [Mayfield] upright and don’t get him hit as much.
“I thought he came out and had a good week of practice. He looked better than he did before the bye week. All of our guys are playing with something. If you’re at 75 percent, you’re at 100 percent. If you’re at 50 percent, you’re functional. So, he’s functional.”
Well, Bowles is right in that Mayfield looked better than he did in New Orleans. The way Mayfield looked against the slimy Saints reminded Joe of the final regular season game of 2023 in Carolina, where Mayfield looked like a shell of himself.
Mayfield hasn’t had one scramble past the line of scrimmage in three games and it looks like he’s been neutered to become more of a stationary, pocket quarterback.
November 11th, 2025 at 7:28 am
Well maybe you should’ve sat him, because Baker has looked like a shell of himself over the last 3 games.
November 11th, 2025 at 7:45 am
It does not help to have an OC that cant adjust to the situation with Baker. He is not getting much help with the play calling.
November 11th, 2025 at 7:46 am
Realistically, how can you expect Baker to run with the ball when the offensive line isn’t blocking well enough to make 1 yard three times in a row? He is hurt but he’s a competitor that doesn’t quit on the team. Maybe I didn’t watch the same game as some of you but I though he played pretty well all things considered.Three TDs to back up receivers and no interceptions. The Patriots have a good team – their offensive line and defensive lines are much better that the Bucs. The busted plays on defense cost us the game, not Baker.
November 11th, 2025 at 7:47 am
28 of 43 nearly 300, 3 TD’s, I’ll take that over hospital ball guy
November 11th, 2025 at 7:48 am
Bake wasn’t the problem against the Pats…3 TD’s, no INT’s…not even his typical fumble/game. When they knew we had to pass, they took turns tearing through the middle of our line…no time to throw.
November 11th, 2025 at 7:54 am
We all knew he ran too much and would get hurt. Especially with the OL hurting too. Its tough because we need a healthy Baker so he’can’ run. 🙁
November 11th, 2025 at 7:54 am
No Baker needed more time in the pocket…All issues on offense are do to no time for Baker.
November 11th, 2025 at 8:14 am
Now we scheme for a pocket passer? Should have kept Trask till Baker healed up.
November 11th, 2025 at 8:18 am
Trask is better than what we have right now in Bridgewater considering he was on the injured list for teeth.
November 11th, 2025 at 8:28 am
Ahh — still see love for Trask — a guy not on any football team.
Pretty sure all these posters know more than the NFL GMs. /s
November 11th, 2025 at 8:30 am
LMAO. Trask is out of football. Is he even selling insurance or driving delivery trucks yet? Who knows.
November 11th, 2025 at 8:31 am
The Lions exposed something with the Bucs offense. The NFL is a copycat league and the slimy Saints and Patriots saw what the Lions did and have attacked the Bucs the same way.
BINGO!!!!!
and what they’ve exposed is Grizz!!!!!….
defenses are stopping the run early because they know Grizz will abandon the run game and they’re taking away the 1st/primary read in the progression but playing man….
the answer to the offense is simple!!!!….dedicate your game plan to running the ball!!!!!
i saw 1 play were Tucker and White were in the back field at the same time and Tucker got 8yards….Grizz never ran 2RB sets again….
when defenses are playing man, everyone knows crossing routes are man beaters…Tez scored on 2 crossing routes and Otton had a HUGE play on a crossing route that was wiped out due to poor execution/mental errors by Shep…
i think its time for Grizz and Tom Moore to sit in the booth right next to each other on gamedays….Allow Tom Moore to be the run game coordinator and let Grizz focus on 3rd down as he did last year….
bottom line is the offense is failing, Grizz in particular and run game has regressed under his offensive leadership…
GO BUCS!!!!
November 11th, 2025 at 8:32 am
1 positive is that we havent lost back-to-back games this year and I believe that streak will continue!!!!!
GO BUCS!!!!
November 11th, 2025 at 8:35 am
Teddy Bridgewater should start this next game. Baker is too hurt and he is hurting this team being out there when he can’t play like himself
November 11th, 2025 at 8:38 am
grizzard isnt injured. whats his excuse
November 11th, 2025 at 8:38 am
He’s one dimensional right now. I saw it in the beginning of the Detroit game. The pocket broke down he scrambles left towards the boundary with one defender to beat with a lane and he mysteriously falls on the turf. He hasn’t scrambled since. Exactly, double EE, crash the pocket, and spy the check down. It makes Mayfield throw in difficult window and you see near ints at times with him forcing it. I think to get a SB Jason has to draft 3-4 contributors offense/defense lineman, LB, convince Evans and David to return, sell out in free agency for a Edge, and Metcalf type WR, and at the trade deadline add some insurance.
November 11th, 2025 at 8:46 am
Baker secretly injured or fully healthy, it does not matter. There’s not a team in the NFL who will give back a win because they feel bad about your injuries.
I believe the true judge for this year’s team will come in two weeks in LA. Forget the Bills—they are too inconsistent and reside in the AFC.
The Rams are currently playing better than anybody, and the 37 year old Stafford is having one of his best years.
This past Sunday was a series of unusually successful big plays by New England. A regular event in college, you don’t see it that much in the NFL. My main gripe with one of them was the play of Morrison when he should never be subbing for a healthy Dean, who is having his best year. Wanna throw away a game just to save a few bucks next year? Apparently so!!
Back to the Rams game …
Bowles is not better than McVay, so he will be out-coached again.
But if the Bucs can keep it down to the wire or win, anything is possible. If they get blown out, this team will need to make changes. Can’t count on the NFC South to be horrible forever.