Baker Mayfield Is Way Better Than Daniel Jones
June 15th, 2026
Numbers.
The question on many Bucs fans’ minds before mandatory minicamp starts tomorrow is. when will Baker Mayfield will re-up with the Bucs?
His contract is up after this season.
Mayfield went public with his contract feelings this month. Bucs AC/DC-loving general manager Jason Licht put a contract in front of Mayfield’s agent and, when Mayfield spoke 10 days ago, he had not issued a counteroffer to Licht’s first missive.
Saad Yousuf and Daniel Popper of The Athletic typed a story about quarterback contracts in the wake of Pat Mahomes signing a hefty extension last week. Yousuf and Popper addressed Mayfield’s status.
He is 16th in AVV at $33.33 million. A rising tide lifts all boats. Will Mayfield get a bump into the Daniel Jones range, closer to $44 million to 45 million? Will he jump into the $50 million range? For now, he said he and the Bucs are “not anywhere close” to a deal.
If the Bucs think they can get Mayfield at Daniel Jones money, Joe thinks that is naive. Hell yes Mayfield is worth more than Jones.
Just look how Mayfield played before the bye last season. He was a legit MVP candidate. Has Jones ever remotely played at that level?
Joe suspects Mayfield, sooner or later, will agree to sign with the Bucs north of $50 million. How much north? That’s open for discussion.
Always remember and never forget, in the NFL, what’s expensive today is typically a bargain tomorrow.
June 15th, 2026 at 4:21 am
At this point the Bucs would be bidding against themselves in regards to a new deal for Baker. If Baker wants a good deal, take what the Bucs are offering. If he wants top 5 QB money, play out the year, and earn it. Don’t just give in now to his demands.
June 15th, 2026 at 4:35 am
Last year, Daniel Jones started out at 71 and went to eight and two. The Colts were eight and five at the time he was injured. There was also some MVP chatter surrounding Jones last year.So, to say that Mayfield is better than Jones is not really true at this point in time. last year, Mayfield played horribly down the stretch.
I really don’t understand why he’s rushing his deal. Because if they paid him according to the way, he played last season, he would be making much less at Daniel Jones because Jones had a far superior year last season.
June 15th, 2026 at 4:57 am
You sit it out until a new contract is signed You don’t take a risk of a freak accident plus you take control of the negotiations. JoeBuc posters may not like it but that is the way it is done
June 15th, 2026 at 6:19 am
Baker is under contract this year so sitting out is not an option. Two things can be true, You can love some of Baker’s attributes and playmaking abilities but also question whether his play will affect his availability late in season and playoffs.
June 15th, 2026 at 6:28 am
Paying mid QBs top 10 money sets franchises back more often than not, Russell Wilson was elite once, Baker had 1 great year 6 average or worse, Tua had more good seasons than Baker, Kyler has had multiple elite seasons, Cousins has had way more success than Baker, even Carr had more years way better than Bakers non 2024 season, his MVP start last season wasn’t sustained that same season he played like Carolina Baker, does this scream to anyone like a $50+ a year QB
June 15th, 2026 at 6:35 am
Baker is under contract this year so sitting out is not an option. Two things can be true, You can love some of Baker’s attributes and playmaking abilities but also question whether his play will affect his availability late in season and playoffs.
This is not a knock on Baker, but both Hebert and Darnold were in the playoffs with injuries that were probably made worse with the punishment they received in the playoffs.
June 15th, 2026 at 6:40 am
Another thing that says maybe Baker isn’t 2024 Baker, Coen made Trevor look like a stud last season, what a colossal mistake letting Coen go
June 15th, 2026 at 6:51 am
Guzzie55. Coen made Trevor look like a stud last season. Well, the first thing a football guy might say is that Baker threw about 15 more TDS than Trevor did in their one year each under Coen. Trevor may have looked like a stud. Baker is a stud. Big difference.
June 15th, 2026 at 6:57 am
To justify paying him people have to compare Baker to other mid to terrible QBs with horrible deals. Everyone knew at the time Tua and Daniels didnt deserve those contracts. The Bucs won’t make the same mistakes those teams made. Going to the media won’t help Baker, it might’ve made things worse judging by Licht’s comments. Overpaying for mediocrity is not a good long term plan. This is why the Bucs have a lot of final season contracts this year, they’re about to turn the page on this boring, tread water, slightly above or below average ho-hum team.
June 15th, 2026 at 6:58 am
Guzzie55. Lawrence completion rate of 60.9 under Coen. Baker 71.9 completion rate under Coen. Baker 107.9 passer rating under Coen. Trevor 90.5 passer rating under Coen. Not even close Guzzie.
June 15th, 2026 at 7:16 am
Imagine baker with Indys defense.
June 15th, 2026 at 7:18 am
Wouldn’t say it’s that clear cut Mayfield is better than Daniel Jones, but they way Jones’ contract is laid out with a bunch of performance incentives is good example of how Bakers’ new deal could be structured if he indeed gets a new contract.
Jones performed at a pretty high level last season before getting injured, and he’s 3 years younger.
June 15th, 2026 at 7:31 am
At 50 million a year according to AI Baker gets to take home approximately 28 million after deductions. Which is a nice chunk of cash however that’s a lot of money to taxes,agents etc…
June 15th, 2026 at 7:32 am
Pay him and let’s move on.
June 15th, 2026 at 7:33 am
“Imagine baker with Indys defense.”
21st in points allowed @24ppg, same as us
28th in first down allowed, worse than us
31st in pass attempts & yards allowed, worse than us
Forced less 2 less turnovers than ours
They’re defense wasn’t head nor shoulders better than our. Their offense was better though, at least with Jones in the line up and they didn’t punt as much as us.