The Tampa Bay Buccaneers season came to an end in the Divisional Round in Detroit against the Lions.
Following the game, head coach Todd Bowles spoke with the media and naturally the question of whether the team will bring back quarterback Baker Mayfield came up.
“He most definitely has. Obviously, it’s too early to talk about that and business is business, but Baker had a hell of a year. We love him. The guys love him. And we’ll see what the future holds.”
—
This statement from Bowles comes on the heals of NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport’s report of mutual interest from both sides in bringing Mayfield back.
“My understanding is, the Bucs want Baker Mayfield back next year,” Rapoport stated Sunday on NFL Network’s NFL Game Day. “He wants to be back as well, potentially cash in on a real, big-time quarterback deal.”
But Laine did note there’s been no discussions up till this point. She added that Mayfield’s representatives plan to meet with the Buccaneers this offseason to negotiate a new deal.
Mayfield appears ready to re-sign, stating,
“I love this group, I said that all year. And it’s authentic. I mean that. It would mean a lot for me, to bring back a lot of key pieces, to get this back together, to get it to Year 2 in the system, you can make huge strides. I would love that. Obviously, who knows how it’s going to play out, but I can’t say enough about this organization and the opportunity they gave me this year. Just thankful, and I hope it works out.”
The Buccaneers could use a franchise tag as an option. The problem with that would be the price tag. The current projection for a quarterback franchise tag would be roughly $36.3 million in 2024. This seems a little high as most expect Mayfield to command around $25 million per year over three years. Stay tuned.
Follow, Like and Subscribe to Bucs Report
For more on this and everything Buccaneers check back here hourly at BucsReport.com
