Temper The Gift
May 11th, 2026
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BY IRA KAUFMAN
Is it time to throw a yellow flag in Baker Mayfield’s direction?
Getting No. 6 to slow down and consider caution is no easy task. His first inclination is to give his body up in an effort to help the Bucs win games.
Tampa Bay fans have seen it time and again on third down — Mayfield leaving a collapsing pocket by dodging an array of quarterback hunters before seeking the sticks.
Predicted success.
Most of the time, he gets to the marker … but there’s a price to pay.
Mayfield played hurt for a good chunk of the 2025 season and it’s not a stretch to suggest Todd Bowles thought about sitting him down for a game or two. Then he looked at his options with Teddy Bridgewater and told Mayfield to soldier on.
Among Mayfield’s many intangibles is an uncanny ability to scramble successfully. He’s never going to be confused with Lamar Jackson or Josh Allen, but Mayfield is remarkably efficient at escaping the pocket and keeping the chains moving.
In the past two seasons, Mayfield has run for 52 first downs. That’s a huge total for a quarterback who has never been considered a blur in the open field. Last year, Jackson had 12 more rushing attempts than Mayfield and finished with 33 less rushing yards.
Many of Mayfield’s scrambles have resulted in first downs instrumental in Buc victories. Tampa Bay fans still marvel at the dazzling 15-yard run Mayfield uncorked against the 49ers on third-and-14 last October, with the Bucs clinging to a one-point lead late in the third quarter.
Two plays later, Mayfield fired a 45-yard TD pass to Tez Johnson and the Bucs went on to a 30-19 triumph.
“I was in disbelief like everyone else,” Bowles said. “It happens every other week or so, when he makes those types of plays and you pray he doesn’t get hurt. He has a knack that you can’t teach or coach.”
But you can try to temper that gift. The Buc coaching staff is looking for that fine balance between discretion and aggressiveness from Mayfield, who just turned 31.
Keeping Mayfield healthy is Job 1 at One Buc Place, but he’s so darned good at this scrambling thing that it’s not an easy call.
When Mayfield arrived in Tampa in 2023, Bowles told him to just be himself and everything would work out fine. For the most part, everything has worked out wonderfully for Mayfield. He’s had two Pro Bowl seasons and has thrown 95 TD passes as a Buccaneer compared to 37 interceptions — that’s an impressive ratio.
Because of Mayfield’s competitive fire, he’s not looking to step out of bounds and avoid contact before the first-down marker. He’ll take on opposing defenders head on if it means he can reach past the sticks.
How critical are Mayfield’s scrambles?
In the Week 1 victory at Atlanta last season, Mayfield was Tampa Bay’s leading rusher with 39 yards. Overall, he rushed for one less first down than Caleb Williams, who ran 77 times, compared to 55 for Mayfield.
Let’s face it, Mayfield’s good at this open-field thing. Those hold-your-breath scrambles demoralize the opposition and lift up teammates. Still, the injury factor cannot be ignored.
Mayfield routinely gives up his body — and that body takes plenty of punishment. The Bucs can try to temper Mayfield’s ski-jumper mentality, but that’s a slippery slope.
After Mayfield ran for 31 yards in the season-ending win against Carolina, Bowles hinted at Tampa Bay’s approach going forward.
“Baker initiated a lot of those hits, so he wanted contact,” Bowles said. “It was his way of getting guys going and getting everything together. That’s how he plays and we have to let him play.”
Mayfield, who ran a 4.8 seconds 40-yard dash at the 2018 combine, picks his spots. He has averaged only three scrambles per game as a Buccaneer and the results are mighty impressive. So the Bucs should think twice before urging Mayfield to tone down his flair as an escape artist.
He’s no Lamborghini, but Mayfield knows how to cross the finish line to extend drives.
Let him ramble on.
May 11th, 2026 at 12:26 pm
Unfortunately we have a Head Coach that has problems making decisions. I don’t care who is the backup. An injured Baker does not guarantees a win.
Todd needs to have a plan in hand to assist Baker to be a threat after an injury. That has to include benching him when is needed. I wouldn’t be surprised if this was one of the reasons Todd lost some players mentally during the month of December. What are the odds we end up winning the division if Baker takes two games of for recovery right after the bye?
It’s a shame when the team can’t trust the Head Coach to earn his money on by making the hard decisions. SMH
May 11th, 2026 at 12:29 pm
3-28
4-14
A reflection of our HEAD COACH.
May 11th, 2026 at 12:30 pm
Good article Ira!
May 11th, 2026 at 12:45 pm
Along with those scrambles came an 8-9 season and no playoffs.
The John Wayne routine is fun to watch, especially when it keeps the chains moving.
But if it doesn’t equate to wins, what is the point?
Lamar is an athletic freak that is almost unparalleled. But he can’t win the big game.
Sound familiar?
May 11th, 2026 at 12:52 pm
Lets not forget to include the 2-7 won loss record over the last 9 games that neither Baker or the head coach could help us find a way out of last year….I mean 2-7? Really? Do the the really good QB’s in this league allow that to happen? Its a question I keep asking myself and coming up with the same answer….
May 11th, 2026 at 1:01 pm
DON’T PAY BAKER LONG-TERM GUARANTEED MONEY
Reason #3 – He won’t make it through his contract.
Reason #2 – He throws unforced INTs in 4th.
Reason #1 – He needs a lot of talent around him.
Team needs money for that.
May 11th, 2026 at 1:32 pm
What a great football player! Unfortunately like Lamar he was fighting injuries inconsistent or banged up play at OL Even the DL was inconsistent forcing him to take chances! Im looking forward to this Buc team ,hopefully they’ll stay healthy and get the run game going with Gainwell, That’ll take pressure off Baker and the whole team! Go Bucs!
May 11th, 2026 at 1:37 pm
Last season we had way too many injuries. Defense Rules already proved that injuries are the reasons why this team underperforms- not the coach or Baker. The statistics are fascinating. The more we have starters out, the worse our record is. And that’s over the past 5 years. Also, there’s no doubt we needed more talent on defense and we got it. If we get through the season avoiding major injuries to starters, we will win LOTS of games.
And that’s a fact.
May 11th, 2026 at 1:43 pm
Confirmation bias is a dangerous thing, lol
May 11th, 2026 at 1:51 pm
Doormat comes through as usual. Excuses are for losers. The 2025 Niners had worse injuries than Bucs. Lions in 2024 were a worse mash unit than Bucs. Great coaching finds a way to win with the players they have.
We have the opposite. Truly the opposite of great.
May 11th, 2026 at 2:18 pm
Hilarious that people think Bowles just needs more talent for his Swiss cheese pass defense to thrive.
False! A terrible scheme and a clueless coach is the causal link.
It really is just that simple.
May 11th, 2026 at 2:20 pm
Baker should save the heroics for playoffs. Slide during regular season, brother, we need you healthy next week(s)!
May 11th, 2026 at 2:28 pm
Adams?!
May 11th, 2026 at 3:02 pm
LynchMob50 Says:
May 11th, 2026 at 12:45 pm
Along with those scrambles came an 8-9 season and no playoffs.
BINGO!!!!!
Bakers “heroics” vanish in the month of DEC!!!!…
yet, folks want to pay an often-injured QB who turns the ball over at a high-rate top dollar lol….
lets get a playoff win!!!!
GO BUCS!!!!
May 11th, 2026 at 3:22 pm
I think the fix is already in play for this. The larger a lead we have, the less needed these scrambles are.
If the defense does their job and holds the other teams scoring down, unlike the last couple seasons, we’ll be in good shape. Likewise, our new coordinator has plenty of weapons to keep running up the score. I’m not saying we’re going to go 30 and 10 against everybody but if we can maintain a 10-point + buffer between us and teams we definitely should beat, like we absolutely didn’t do at the end of last season, then Mayfield won’t feel compelled to get that needed first down in a close game all the time. After all, when we had the 6 and 2 record early last season, a lot of those games were super close and we only won mini games right at the end. You can’t live that way and expect to have double digit wins at the end of the season. He would never say this but I guarantee Baker lost faith in the defense and didn’t want to give the ball to the opposition’s offense thinking they’d probably score. Back when we won our first super bowl, Brad Johnson, the king of live to see another offensive drive, would frequently throw the football away and didn’t take a lot of sacks knowing his defense to give him the ball right back. Granted, he had no ability whatsoever to scramble anywhere but he was a great game manager. For Baker to get to the point he doesn’t feel the need to sacrifice himself, he needs to have faith in her defense again. And our defense needs to earn that faith. We’ll see what these new guys can do!
May 11th, 2026 at 3:28 pm
I guess football is not a team sport. I guess the quarterback is the blame for the whole teams failures! Got it! Learn something new everyday
May 11th, 2026 at 3:56 pm
#99
And the HC of course.
You’d think the other 50+ players, scores of asst coaches, etc would play a part but nope.
It’s all Todd’s fault and when it’s not it’s Bakers.
Oh well, guess we’re screwed (yay say the whiny losers) cause TODD is the coach and Baker is the starting QB for AT LEAST another year.
“Gloom, despair and agony on me” 😭🍼🤡
May 11th, 2026 at 4:17 pm
Facts are for WINNERS. And the facts say staying healthy is the key to winning. This football team is loaded with talent. If the O-line and QB stay healthy we will score oodles of points. If the defense also stays healthy we will prevent oodles of points. That formula will lead to regular and post season success. If we lose all our expensive starters and high draft picks to injuries, we will struggle.
May 11th, 2026 at 4:57 pm
Pops Malone. “It’s a question I keep asking myself and coming up with the same answer”. Well, if your answer is none than you need to do more than just ask yourself a question. You need to know some football or you need to do some research. It’s such a layup that I’ll let you answer it for yourself and let you feel dumb. Like you’re acting, Pops.
May 11th, 2026 at 4:57 pm
Jack
The doom and gloom crowd suck the big one! lol
Fortunately it’s really only about 4 people and we know who they are.
Lefty, Grover , 3.28 Evans and lynchmob
May 11th, 2026 at 5:56 pm
Proud to be a part of that group!!!
May 11th, 2026 at 6:21 pm
You shouldn’t be. Or of your name either.
May 11th, 2026 at 6:35 pm
Why Stpetematt?
Is it because John Lynch stole Lichts lunch money when he signed Evans out from under him?
Hahahahahahahahahahahahaha!!!!!!!
May 11th, 2026 at 6:37 pm
“Let him ramble on”. Couldn’t agree more, Ira. You’re saying Baker has 95 TDS passing and 37 picks these last 3 years. Wow. And rushing for that many first downs while he’s at it. Wow. Great idea Sage. I believe I’d tell him to be himself. And ramble on. And let the chips fall where they may. Great article, now are you ready to endorse his extension, or are you still advocating that he prove it?
May 11th, 2026 at 7:01 pm
KC had 6 wins. I guess Mahomes now sucks if you use the troll logic.
May 11th, 2026 at 7:32 pm
Mayfield is not only hurting himself but team a well. He’s not a Josh Allen. He needs too slide before he gets hit. Taking those hits has resulted in poor performance by Baker. After the bye week his injuries tank the season. Todd Bowles is to be blamed for this disastrous decision. When Baker got injured he lost almost every game. If Bowles had rested him for two or 3 games the zBucs would have won their division.
For me, Bowles decision to play Baker was reason enough for him to be fired. And where were the Glazers in allowing this stupidity. UTTER STUPIDITY
May 11th, 2026 at 8:27 pm
Badbucs Says:
May 11th, 2026 at 7:01 pm
KC had 6 wins. I guess Mahomes now sucks if you use the troll logic.
Sadly the trolls will never understand this logic
May 11th, 2026 at 8:36 pm
Munch and the Loser Bunch don’t read Ira comments so they missed this truthful account of Baker’s overall value to the team. Get over it Losers. Baker going to get 50mill+/yr for multiple years.
May 11th, 2026 at 9:19 pm
Pretty sure none of Mayfield’s injuries last year resulted from open field running.
Getting hit behind the line of scrimmage was what did the damage I believe.
If the OLine stays healthy this year – then Baker probably stays healthy as well.
52 first downs by the QB the last 2 years IS a big #. And you never know in the moment when one of those runs means the difference in winning a game.
So just gotta let Baker be Baker and trust him to decide when it is appropriate to play tough guy and when it is appropriate to slide and protect his body….
May 11th, 2026 at 9:27 pm
Pay him!!
May 11th, 2026 at 9:44 pm
Yes Ira, Baker will be Baker, and good for us.
Baker does slide if he accomplishes the objective before he gets hit. We’ve all watched him slide plenty. But he is spicy, liking to lay a hit on a defender not taking him seriously. That’s who Mayfield is — the kind of competitor you want on your side.
The second half of last season was a disaster — team-wide. On offense, it was painful to watch the Grizz game. If we went ahead, he went conservative, run, run, and then 3rd and long with a broken O-line and a bounty on Mayfield’s head. Great! Give your QB 1.75 seconds to attempt a pass on a deeper-route play instead of a quick short pass for a potential first down.
There are multiple reasons why it looked like the team was giving up last year. My personal opinion is that if we had a qualified play-caller, we would have scored a lot more points, and maybe won more games because we didn’t support our weak defense more with a stronger offense.
The antibakes are going to tell me that I’m making excuses for Baker. I’ll always call Mayfield’s performance objectively, but I won’t blame him — or any other QB — for the incompetence of others.
May 11th, 2026 at 10:01 pm
Pickgrin Says:
May 11th, 2026 at 9:19 pm
Pretty sure none of Mayfield’s injuries last year resulted from open field running.
********************************
Pickgrin: Agreed. What I say is Mayfield picking up a couple of stingers in the run, but a lot of unobservable injuries sustained during pocket-collapsing sacks. These were situations in which the collapse happens fast, the QB cannot escape and gets bent and crushed by a legion of very large, heavy men. I believe that these are the most dangerous scenarios in terms of QB injuries.
In my book, Baker’s biggest detriment to himself is not his scrambling, but rather his total unwillingness to throw the ball away when it appears that all is lost.
But we have to take the bad, along with the good with Mayfield, don’t we. The same competitive fire that makes him a winner can also get him hurt.
That’s why I followed him from Cleveland. He refuses to loose and will constantly find a way — any way — to win. I love watching him play.
May 11th, 2026 at 10:03 pm
What I “saw” (not “say”). Blew it — sorry.
May 11th, 2026 at 10:04 pm
My question is if Bake needed to scramble that much or was there a better option at the time, like passing to an open receiver. Yes, I understand a QB only has 2-3 seconds to make a decision. Yes, I realize watching the game on tv can be misleading, but I question if Bake has a problem seeing open receivers. I’d like the answer to be no. Maybe DR can come up with some stats.
And I will add, Bake looked really rusty in preseason and the first game 2025. He was passing low, high and behind. That seemed to continue during the season. It made me wonder if he even practiced with receivers off season or was all ready hurt. Brady demanded his receivers be on the spot, so he could pass the ball before they even got there. It took practice, it took a desire for excellence. Bake seems more like a gun it or run it and hope for the best.
May 11th, 2026 at 10:14 pm
Part of QBR ranking is for running. Baker was #1 in that metric among all qualified quarterbacks with a 27.9 score for the 2025 season. For what it’s worth, which is plenty imo.
May 11th, 2026 at 10:59 pm
BucaneroJim: Agree that Mayfield looked off his usual game in terms of passing precision last year. During the back half of the season injuries were likely the cause, but before that, no excuses.
You have to think that it’s his focus coming in to this season. In a contract year after a sub-par season, he has to perform to his previous potential. Otherwise, he’ll be done as a starter for any team that has great potential to be a winner.