Albert Breer: Bucs, Baker Mayfield To Resume Contract Talks This Week
July 21st, 2026
“Greeny, Albert Breer said I’m going to wrap up the Baker Mayfield signing. What do you think?”
It seems the Bucs will resume talks with quarterback Baker Mayfield’s camp this week. And one well-plugged-in NFL insider wouldn’t be shocked if a deal gets done before the regular season.
Several reports, including one late last week, have said the Bucs and Mayfield are not close on a contract. Mayfield is about to enter the final year of a three-year deal.
Albert Breer of SI.com typed that the two sides are scheduled to resume talks this week. Breer thinks the Bucs will make a major push to get this wrapped up.
Mayfield has said his deadline is the start of training camp. The first Bucs practice of training camp is a week from tomorrow, June 29.
Breer previously scoffed at Mayfield’s deadline. He noted — and Joe fully agrees — that if Bucs AC/DC-loving general manager Jason Licht offers Mayfield what he wants, of course Mayfield will sign the deal whether it is June 30, sometime in August or in the middle of the regular season.
Breer also noted the Bucs have a recent history of coming to terms with players in the middle of training camp. Tristan Wirfs is Exhibit A.
I think they’ll get something done before Week 1. This isn’t overly complicated. Mayfield is due to make $40 million this year, the final year of the three-year, $100 million deal he and the Bucs agreed to. So he doesn’t have to overextend himself to get a contract. The franchise tag for quarterbacks projects to just over $50 million for 2027, meaning two tags would be just north of $110 million total. That sets the APY at $55 million per year, which is right around where Justin Herbert, Jared Goff, Trevor Lawrence and Jordan Love are.
Breer said his educated guess is Mayfield gets paid slightly north of $50 million a year on a three-year pact.
So something in the range of $165 million over another three years makes sense, or a little more than that to account for inflation over the aforementioned deals.
The Joe typing here is still triggered by the Bucs’ 2-7 meltdown last year and for better or worse, Mayfield was part of that. Mayfield didn’t miss a start.
That’s why the same Joe typing here would prefer the Bucs wait until after the season to see how Mayfield bounces back so the team doesn’t potentially chain itself to a quarterback with a history of injuries on the wrong side of 30.
Still, everything Joe has heard on and off the record is Mayfield will be the Bucs’ starting quarterback in 2027, some way, somehow.
July 21st, 2026 at 4:26 am
I agree with you Joe. I don’t mind Baker being here but I don’t want the team to have to rely on him as much as we did last year. Shore up the defense and running game and sit him down to heal when he gets hurt.
Bowles coached out of desperation last season and was afraid to sit Baker down. I have been blaming it on Baker, but it is Todd‘s fault. He is the coach and just like Dan Quinn set Jaden Daniels down to heal, bowls should’ve sat Baker down to heal.
July 21st, 2026 at 5:24 am
ATLBUC
Good points all, other than leaving out that our illustrious GM thought signing Bridgewater was in any way the appropriate move.
He’s the biggest poser GM in the league.
July 21st, 2026 at 5:41 am
In 2026 contract money Baker is 54 million per year, he will be signed by the time training camp starts.
Neither the Glazers or Jason can handle ANYMORE bad publicity.
July 21st, 2026 at 7:18 am
Make a deal JL or end up paying a lot more at the end of the year or risk losing our Franchise QB! Get it done!!!
July 21st, 2026 at 7:30 am
He needs to sign a Tom Brady/Kirk Cousins contract.
Team friendly but fully guaranteed.
4 years. 180 million. Fully guaranteed.
90 million signing bonus.
July 21st, 2026 at 7:54 am
another 3year deal with heavy incentives that allows the bucs to get out of it after the 27′ season would be ideal…like joe, i still believe the wise thing to do is to wait until after the season…baker has to prove he can win in DEC & JAN…and stay healthy
the Vita deal needs to get done ASAP!!!!
GO BUCS!!!!
July 21st, 2026 at 8:03 am
Why is the media so hung up on this. Give him a raise for this season at most. make him earn a contract. Not that hard!!
July 21st, 2026 at 8:35 am
Yes the Bucs need to get the deal done. Nobody is talking , but maybe Gruden, but Jake Browning doesn’t appear to be much of an improvement over Bridgewater. So, yes get him signed because you have no back up. Second, yes, they will need to count on him to stay healthy, because I don’t think Browning can run this offense and the defense still has major problems. If the offense can’t produce a lot of points the team is in big trouble. I don’t know if you get much from Browning.
July 21st, 2026 at 8:36 am
I sincerely hope we draft our franchise qb next draft, it’s the draft to do it. I don’t really understand the infatuation and delusion from the local media and half the fan base.
July 21st, 2026 at 8:58 am
When was the last time this team drafted a franchise QB and developed him? Never in 50 years. They won’t start now.
July 21st, 2026 at 9:07 am
Only 36% of QBs drafted in the first round make it. Relying on that is foolish.
July 21st, 2026 at 9:20 am
People are just stuck in their feelings instead of using their brains.
Demanding a contract for a QB that went 2-7 down the stretch.
Failing upwards is truly an art form. Baker and Bowles are painting a masterpiece.
4-13
July 21st, 2026 at 9:34 am
Guys, the Bucs have never developed a QB so they shouldn’t even try. They never drafted an all-pro CB, so they shouldn’t try that either. You know what, due to the low odds of drafting a great QB, or any position, just skip the draft all together since only bad things can happen.
Just loser talk all around. Stick with what isnt working cause what’s around the corner could be worse. Lol…pathetic. I can tell a lot of you in real life dont do much, dont go for dreams or big goals cause of risk. Sad.
Some of yall are basing the Bucs results on what happens to other teams or what happened with the Bucs 10+ years ago. Its a risk to draft any position, if doesn’t work out, just draft another player! What is people’s obsession with old, injured, below average, expensive vets that cant help you go deep in the playoffs?
Why are so many of you addicted to mediocrity and losing?
July 21st, 2026 at 9:37 am
The TEAM went 2-7 down the stretch, not Mayfield. He was still playing with most critical parts of the offense missing. Injuries derailed our season and that’s a fact. Nobody can recover from playing 2 3rd and 4th string guards at the same time. It’s just too much of an ask.
July 21st, 2026 at 9:55 am
VegetableLasagna Says:
July 21st, 2026 at 9:20 am
People are just stuck in their feelings instead of using their brains.
Demanding a contract for a QB that went 2-7 down the stretch.
Failing upwards is truly an art form. Baker and Bowles are painting a masterpiece.
4-13
____________
You’ve identified what you think it the problem (Baker), but that’s only half the job. What’s your solution? Who are you going to get that’s both available and better?
After watching Quarterback and going back and doing my own rewatch of last season, I would agree that Baker indeed played a part in the collapse, but everyone on the team did. Even Chris Braswell, who was rarely on the field. That’s how team sports work.
Busted coverages and bad defensive calls made up a majority of the problems. We’ve addressed quite a bit of the busted coverage part of the problem. Now to get rid of the play caller… To apply my own question to myself, it’s much harder to guess who will be available for coaching gigs than it is to look at what QB’s hit the FA market or will be available in the drat next year. We won’t have any idea who the candidates even are until late in the year.
July 21st, 2026 at 9:56 am
Hey, Licht and Breer, the deadline was the start of training camp. Not before the regular season.
You’ve had plenty of notice and plenty of time. If you pull crap and wait until after the beginning of training camp, I hope you get what you deserve and he picks up his family and moves to another city.
This power trip and power move is BS and is just so stupid.
July 21st, 2026 at 9:58 am
How long does it take to put together 3 years and $165 million, with $150 million guaranteed?
Done. See how simple that was?
July 21st, 2026 at 10:38 am
This is my Joe.
Agree 100%.
July 21st, 2026 at 10:38 am
Yes, Baker was part of that 2-7 stretch. As opposed to all the well-documented things that went wrong, he was the part that got two wins and made most of the other games respectable. If a depleted team loses a game because of one or two plays in the fourth quarter –as alleged, they put up a good fight. Baker kept the team from falling apart. Guys like to dump on Bridgewater, but finding someone to minimize disaster is not easy. There are QB’s with gaudy numbers on good teams, but few and far between are those that can keep a team together when catastrophe comes calling.
July 21st, 2026 at 10:49 am
“The franchise tag for quarterbacks projects to just over $50 million for 2027, meaning two tags would be just north of $110 million total.”
The only way this would even be on the table is if this offense/team drastically overachieves and we somehow end up in 2-3 games deep into the playoffs, but at as of today it’s just a hypothetical option.
Do remember, we’ve never franchised a QB, ever and we did have that span of time from ’13 to ’19 where we didn’t use the franchise tag at all. Since 2020 we’ve only used the tag 4 times on 3 different players and haven’t used it since ’24 locking up Winfield.
So, in July of ’26 talking about the franchise tag for 2027 feels like alot of assumption making and empty wishing. Pretty sure the team has that as a break glass after breaking the glass in even of an emergency.
July 21st, 2026 at 11:01 am
Hold. The. Line. Take-it, or Leave-it. It makes ZERO SENSE to give HIM $165-MILLION. That’s NO DEAL. I don’t give a damn about manipulating the CAP. I am NOT risking mortgaging the FUTURE. I mean, WHY TF would you do THAT, when you can pay the exact SAME AMOUNT on a ‘year-by-year’ basis. It’s ABSURD. On an aging, beaten up and banged up, undersized, inconsistent, injury-prone Quarterback, who is a walking distraction, and focused on all the WRONG things, after a 3-8 finish to last season. And, I DON’T CARE about the $30-MILLION. That’s NOT any reason to extend ANY Player, with A LOT of Question Marks… It’s WEAK. There are PLENTY of other ways to take care of that. AND, if this season is a complete total DISASTER (which is highly probable, and more likely, than not)… Then, that “$30-MILLION” is IRRELEVANT. You’re ‘rebuilding’ through a total tear down and TANKING anyway in 2027, with a brand new HC. So, you just ‘eat-it’ ASAP and get-it over with, and just MOVE TF ON. If Baker “KILLS-IT” this season (50/50 chance at BEST)… Then, you’re going to use the TAG to re-sign him anyway, & then you’re just pushing EVEN MORE $$$$ to future seasons. The Bucs/JL have already put THEMSELVES in this position… The smartest move is to “PLAY-OUT” THIS SEASON FIRST. If they PAY BAKER, then we’ve just screwed ourselves EVEN DEEPER, and for MUCH LONGER. Stuck in a never-ending DOOM LOOP. With a QB who is NOT good enough to move the needle, and a BUSTED UP “Salary Cap,” FOR YEARS. And, not only are you STUCK with an OLD ‘undersized’ Baker Mayfield, but you are also STUCK with Bowles & Lickt. NOT A PENNY over $135-MIL, even makes any sense. $150-MIL GUARANTEED, and you should have your freaking HEAD examined. Period. End of Story. It’s going to take us another 2+YEARS, AFTER Baker is already long gone, JUST to get outta this Salary Cap MESS… Even, if everything turns out “ok” with Baker’s Play!!!! THAT’S the position we are in right now, IF THEY ‘EXTEND’ HIM.
July 21st, 2026 at 11:22 am
Bee Says
“Guys, the Bucs have never developed a QB so they shouldn’t even try. They never drafted an all-pro CB, so they shouldn’t try that either.”
Doug Williams.
Ronde Barber.
Know the team you are trolling.
July 21st, 2026 at 11:25 am
I’ve been saying all along:
4 years at 50-54 million
2 years guaranteed
Lots of incentives
Gives the Bucs an out and gives Baker the extra year he wants.
July 21st, 2026 at 11:27 am
We do need a better backup though.
July 21st, 2026 at 11:31 am
You DON’T “DRAFT” a QB, just to be “DRAFTING” a QB. Especially, on year #1 of a complete ‘rebuild’ and total roster overhaul. You “SIGN” a QB on the CHEAP, and BUILD. THE. ROSTER. FIRST. It’s a total WASTE throwing your supposed young stud ‘franchise’ QB of the future, to the WOLVES like that, with a depleted roster and a BAD TEAM. I’ve just seen soooo MANY good QB’s completely RUINED that way, AND you’re only WASTING the clock on HIS ‘rookie’ CONTRACT. You sign a solid VET on the CHEAP. Then, DRAFT your QB and 5-FULL YEARS worth of his ‘rookie’ deal, to go along with your LOADED STACKED ROSTER.
July 21st, 2026 at 11:50 am
Jow writes: “Breer previously scoffed at Mayfield’s deadline. He noted — and Joe fully agrees — that if Bucs AC/DC-loving general manager Jason Licht offers Mayfield what he wants, of course Mayfield will sign the deal whether it is June 30, sometime in August or in the middle of the regular season.”
Well, Baker said that he would not NEGOTIATE after training camp started.
Giving Baker what he wants, regardless of how late it is in the season, is hardly negotiating.
July 21st, 2026 at 11:51 am
“Doug Williams.
Ronde Barber.
Know the team you are trolling.”
He was 100% being sarcastic, the “skip the draft” part was the tell.
July 21st, 2026 at 12:07 pm
I’d say the BUCS are pushing for a ‘resolution’ one way, or another… So, that they can just move forward and focus on THE SEASON. Eliminate the Distraction. It should go like this… JL to Bake: “Are You Willing To Move Off YOUR Demands… Best we can do is throw some more ‘incentives’ in there, to make it appear like a much ‘bigger’ number for your ego… BUT the base we already offered, has to remain the same in order for it to work for us!?” Then, Bake to JL… “Umm, NOPE.” Lickt: “Okay, fine. So, let’s go play some damn ball then, and see what happens.”
July 21st, 2026 at 12:27 pm
WBL
Thank you. Nice to see someone didn’t miss the forest due to the trees and can read with nuisance.
Melvin
I like what you’re saying when it comes to the strategy of building the team then get the young QB, but I dont know if the Bucs will have that luxury. If they happen to have a chance at a “generational talent” (I use that term very loosely) then you have to go for it. Ideally I’d go with your plan to maximize the talent and contract but you need a lot of things to fall into place for that. Namely, someone that can build a team and obviously Licht isn’t him.
All in all, I think Baker will bet on himself. I’m so ready for something new with this team. Bowles version of the Bucs is so boring.
July 21st, 2026 at 12:29 pm
Buccaneer Bonzai Says:
July 21st, 2026 at 11:27 am
We do need a better backup though.
Browns’ 3rd round pick in 2025, Dillon Gabriel, can be had for a late round draft pick
July 21st, 2026 at 12:56 pm
“We do need a better backup though.”
Holding out hope Jack Strand doesn’t make the Falcons final-53 and we can get that big bodied, missile-armed, former 4yr starter in college on our roster. Even if we’ve got to cheat a little bit.
July 21st, 2026 at 1:14 pm
Vegetable lasagna…Please go eat some form of dead animal! Protein to fuel the brain!
July 21st, 2026 at 1:16 pm
Tofo Buffalo Wings and Odules, a football winning combo!
July 21st, 2026 at 1:29 pm
Vegetable is a fitting name. What a clown.
Hate when people say “the Bucs have never drafted a pro bowl (insert position), so they should never try ever again”. Talk about a loser mentality…ridiculous.