Bucs bring in QB Baker Mayfield to compete with Kyle Trask
Although the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have publicly stated they have full confidence in quarterback Kyle Trask, that hasn’t stopped the team from introducing competition to push their sophomore QB.
The Bucs have agreed to a one-year deal worth up to $8.5 million with former No. 1 overall pick Baker Mayfield, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. This will be Mayfield’s fourth team in three years. He is expected to compete with Trask for the starting position in Tampa.
Mayfield, who was split last season between the Carolina Panthers and the Los Angeles Rams, has apparently revived his career in Los Angeles after asking for his release in Carolina. In five games with the Rams, Mayfield threw for 850 yards, four touchdowns and two interceptions.
He was 1-3 as a starter, but he led the team to a 17-16 win over the Las Vegas Raiders on Week 14 Thursday Night Football in his Rams debut.
“It has to be the best opportunity,” Mayfield told reporters in January of where he will play in 2023. “I’m not going to go get a check to start and play. After seeing a place that makes me having fun playing football again it’s going to be hard to try anything else new but it’s going to be a big decision there’s going to be a lot of thinking to do there’s going to be a lot of changes this offseason in any the league.
Mayfield is just two years away from leading the Cleveland Browns to an 11-5 season and a playoff appearance. That year, he completed 62.8% of his passes for 3,563 yards, 26 touchdowns and just eight interceptions.
Trask, a 2021 second-round pick, completed just three of nine passes for 23 yards while backing up Tom Brady this season. Although he has far less experience than Mayfield, he earned a vote of confidence from general manager Jason Licht and head coach Todd Scouting Bowles at the NFL Combine.
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