Where Baker Mayfield Excels
August 14th, 2026
Dan Orlovsky.
A lot of Bucs fans will probably be surprised by this.
Former Bucs quarterback Dan Orlovsky, now a talking head with BSPN, had a few points to make about Baker Mayfield. The first one may make many Bucs fans grab their mug of coffee, thinking they’re not yet awake and reading the wrong thing.
But it is true.
It seems Orlovsky believes Mayfield has a good arm. A damn good arm. The sixth-best in the NFL.
This analysis will surely spark outrage with some fans who believe Mayfield is a noodle-arm thrower.
And I also want to call out Mayfield — I still think he has the most slept-on arm in the NFL.
Joe knows some Bucs fans disagree and, as always, Joe suspects it has something to do with the PFF Tribe grades.
Orlovsky believes only Josh Allen, Justin Herbert, Caleb Williams, Matt Stafford and Pat Mahomes have a stronger arm than Mayfield. There are a few other categories where Orlovsky believes Mayfield is among the top-10 quarterbacks in the league.
Second-reaction ability
No. 10 Mayfield
Rushing ability
No. 8 Mayfield
Whatever doubt Joe may have had about Mayfield throwing long passes was tossed out the window the way Mayfield threw two touchdowns to Emeka Egbuka to open the 2025 season. Both of those passes (25-, and 30-yard TDs) were not just thrown on a rope, but they were perfectly placed.
Guys who without an arm couldn’t make those throws.
Joe doesn’t have an issue with Mayfield’s arm. So long as it is healthy.
August 14th, 2026 at 4:13 am
People think he has an inaccurate arm, not a weak one.
August 14th, 2026 at 4:19 am
Baker was. #1 overall draft pick. He has plenty of talent, both potential and demonstrated.
Then again, it was the Cleveland Browns.
Arm has always been rated up there by people in the know. Height not so much. Unclear how Payton structured an offense for Drew Brees but then again Mayfield has not always been lucky with his coaching.
August 14th, 2026 at 5:18 am
Yes this is a Franchise QB. Get him signed and get it out of the headlines. LFG!!
August 14th, 2026 at 5:42 am
Thousands of humans walking the earth “have a good arm” and can make all the throws in the NFL——only 6-8 can make those throws under duress from a 300 pound lineman trying to take his head off. Poise under pressure cannot be evaluated.
August 14th, 2026 at 6:38 am
A year or two ago I watched the pro bowl quarterback arm competition thing. I was in the hospital so there wasn’t exactly much else on. Baker had the best arm after any of them. I guess the pro bowl is kind of like a game show these days.
August 14th, 2026 at 6:54 am
Brees was excellent throwing on his tippy toes, not a joke, he was basically 6-2 when throwing even though he’s “listed” at 6’0, made a difference
August 14th, 2026 at 7:00 am
@Lou
I agree with your assessment. Baker has an arm but “height not so much” which is likely one reason he struggles at times. If baker was 6’3-6’5 with his style of play what would that be like?
August 14th, 2026 at 7:03 am
I’ve always thought his arm strength is great, but his touch passes (wheel routes) weren’t great, nor his touch on long passes wasn’t great.
August 14th, 2026 at 7:14 am
Close to 100 TD’s thrown the past few years! I think he does something right!!
August 14th, 2026 at 7:17 am
Mayfield has one of the longest air yards passes in the history of the NFL. Did it with the Browns I think. He has a rocket arm. He’s plenty accurate too. Has several games with almost no incompletions. You don’t do that while inaccurate.
So anyone who says he doesn’t have a strong arm or isn’t accurate is 100% wrong.
August 14th, 2026 at 7:17 am
No one hits all the throws..
August 14th, 2026 at 7:36 am
If we don’t resign him THEN BRING BACK DAN ORLOVSKY!😁😀👍🤦🙄 HE’S STILL GOT HIS JERSEY THERE. Maybe he’s improved as a QB now.🤮💩
August 14th, 2026 at 7:39 am
Right- other than Goff that one time…
August 14th, 2026 at 7:51 am
In December 2020, Mayfield threw a pass from his own 40 out the back of the end zone (70+ yards) in a game against Baltimore. His 2 highest efficiency games were:
Seattle Seahawks (October 5, 2025): Mayfield went 29-of-33 (87.9% completion rate) for 379 yards and 2 touchdowns, logging just 4 incompletions. According to the NFL on CBS, this made him the first quarterback in NFL history to throw for 375+ yards with fewer than 5 incompletions in a regular-season game.
Houston Texans (September 19, 2021): While playing for the Cleveland Browns, Mayfield put up his highest single-game completion percentage by going 19-of-21, which equates to just 2 incompletions (90.5%).
August 14th, 2026 at 7:52 am
Baker has been known to have a big arm since college, what are people even talking about…Gruden who is known for hyperbole says he has a cannon…YouTube a video of all his deep touchdowns if ur a naysayer