Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield continues to prove he is the NFL’s most underrated quarterback after a big win over the San Francisco 49ers. (Photo by Julio Aguilar/Getty Images)
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Baker Mayfield continues to illustrate that he is the NFL’s most underrated quarterback.
Despite playing without three of his top receivers — Emeka Egbuka was sidelined for the entire second half due to a hamstring injury — Mayfield wished the Buccaneers another impressive win, this time over the NFC West-leading San Francisco 49ers.
The 30-year-old quarterback threw for 256 yards and two touchdowns, but his most impressive play of the day was a 15-yard run for a first down late in the third quarter. In a play that showed what Mayfield is all about – nasty and resilient – he escaped a potential sack from two Niners defenders to go for a first down on 3rd and 14.
“I was in disbelief like everyone else,” head coach Todd Bowles said after the game of Mayfield’s miracle. “It happens about every other week. He makes those plays and you pray he doesn’t get hurt or anything, but he has a talent that you can’t teach or coach. It was an incredible play.”
That play extended a Buccaneers drive that should have ended in a scoreless punt and it resulted in a 44-yard touchdown pass to Tez Johnson that would give the Buccaneers a commanding 27-19 lead that they would not relinquish.
It doesn’t seem to matter who stands next to Mayfield. Whether it’s Egbuka and Mike Evans, whether it’s Chris Godwin, or just a trio of secondary receivers like Johnson, Kameron Johnson and Sterling Shepard, No. 6 always seems to find a way to get it done.
“Those guys are taking a huge step forward and hats off to them for being prepared, not backing down, not backing down,” Mayfield said. “I really and truly trust the guys that are in there. They’re ready, we’ve been talking all week, the guys are on the same page and it’s real. I trust these guys.”
Johnson – that is, Kameron – led the Buccaneers with three catches for 64 yards and a touchdown. For perspective, the second-year undrafted receiver didn’t have a single career catch before the Buccaneers’ game against the Niners, and was used primarily as a returner on special teams this season.
That all changed in the win against the Niners, when Mayfield threw him the ball.
“Everyone was confused,” Lavonte David said of Johnson’s catch. “Everyone was excited. That guy, Baker, he plays with his heart. We know he’s going to put his heart on the line every week, week in, week out, and so we have no problem doing the same for him.”
Entering the game, Mayfield – who has revived his career in Tampa Bay and emerged as a fan favorite – was tied for the most touchdown passes (79) since the start of the 2023 season with Jared Goff of the Detroit Lions. Mayfield ranked second in the NFL with 41 career touchdown passes last season despite missing Godwin in 10 of those games.
If Mayfield continues to play the way he has through the first six games of the season, he could not only be a top MVP candidate, but also collect his first MVP award and become the first Bucs player to ever win it.
“He’s the MVP,” Tez Johnson said in the locker room after the win. “That’s just Baker making everyone fake. He’s a dog.”
For the sixth straight season – and third straight under Mayfield – the Buccaneers appear to be well on their way to another playoff berth. They have the longest current streak of any NFC team with five straight playoff appearances and are on pace to win their fifth consecutive division title.
In a conference that suddenly seems wide open with the Philadelphia Eagles on a two-game losing streak, the Buccaneers could very well be the team to beat in the NFC. It’s a long season and we’re only six games into the 2025 campaign, but the road to the Super Bowl could very well go through Tampa Bay.
A big reason for that – despite the Buccaneers’ high number of injuries to key players – is due to Mayfield’s presence and leadership.
In six games this season, Mayfield has had just one interception. Entering the game, his 0.6% interception rate ranked third among all starting quarterbacks in the NFL.
In other words, the former No. 1 overall pick is playing his best football no matter who is on the field next to him.
“It says a lot about the depth and the next man up,” Bowles said. “The coaches do a great job of getting these guys ready to play and they don’t back down when they get there. We have confidence in them and they have confidence in themselves. For us to continue to lose guys week after week and for those guys to play, it says a lot about the resiliency of the guys in the locker room.”
The Buccaneers are clearly a proven team that has been through all the tough games. The Mayfield era saw Tampa Bay make back-to-back playoff appearances, losing by one possession to the Detroit Lions in the divisional round of the postseason and losing on a last-second field goal to the Washington Commanders in the wild-card round last season.
They also have a number of veterans still around from the 2020 Super Bowl squad led by Tom Brady, such as Evans, Godwin, Tristan Wirfs, David and Jamel Dean.
The mainstream sports media has always focused on the bigger or ‘sexier’ teams such as the Eagles, Detroit Lions, Kansas City Chiefs or Buffalo Bills. But this Buccaneers team could be the best team in the NFL for six weeks.
And a lot of that has to do with Mayfield.
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