Ex-Oklahoma QB Baker Mayfield Calls Current Buccaneers Team ‘Really Good Group’

Former Sooners great Baker Mayfield is entering a contract year with the Buccaneers, and he has great confidence in his team.

Former Oklahoma quarterback Baker Mayfield oversees a drill at his youth football camp. | Carson Field / Sooners On SI

NORMAN — Baker Mayfield has much to prove in 2026.

The former Oklahoma star quarterback is entering his ninth season in the NFL and his fourth with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Mayfield and the Bucs got out to a hot 6-2 start in 2025, but Tampa Bay dropped seven of its last nine games to miss the playoffs for the first time of the quarterback’s stint with the team.

But even after the disappointing back half of the season, Mayfield is confident he can bring the Buccaneers back to the playoffs.

“We have a really, really good group,” Mayfield said at his youth camp in Norman on Saturday.

Individually, Mayfield was one of the NFL’s best quarterbacks early in the 2025 season. He was integral to Tampa Bay’s 6-2 start, completing 63.9 percent of his passes for 1,919 yards, 13 touchdowns and only two interceptions.

But as the Buccaneers began to slide, so did Mayfield’s production.The quarterback threw for 1,774 yards, 13 touchdowns and nine interceptions during Tampa Bay’s final nine contests.

The Bucs did experience several major injuries throughout the season, as wide receivers Mike Evans and Chris Godwin and running back Bucky Irving each missed extensive time.

While it lowered the Buccaneers’ ceiling last year, Mayfield believes that these speed blocks can benefit them in 2026 and the years ahead.

“We had injuries over injuries,” Mayfield said. “That experience and guys having to step up, it will help us out this year.”

Evans opted to sign with the San Francisco 49ers as a free agent, which Mayfield admitted is “not great” because of the wide receiver’s future Hall of Fame status and how impactful he was to the organization for 12 seasons.

But Irving and Godwin will both be back, and they should be fully healthy by Week 1. Plus, the Buccaneers have several promising young players, including wide receivers Emeka Egbuka and Tez Johnson.

---

Sign up to our free newsletter and follow us on Facebook and X for the latest news. 

---

“We have a really good skill group, so I’m excited about it,” Mayfield said.

Mayfield will also face plenty of pressure in the fall because 2026 is a contract year for the quarterback.

He is entering the final season of his three-year, $100 million deal. If Mayfield and the Bucs are unable to reach a contract agreement this summer, his 2026 production will largely dictate how much he is able to make in future years, assuming he wants to stay in Tampa Bay.

Mayfield considers Norman to be his home.

The quarterback started three seasons for the Sooners, leading them to a 33-6 record. He threw for 12,292 yards, 119 touchdowns and 21 interceptions during his career in Norman and won the Heisman Trophy in 2017.

Before landing in Tampa Bay, Mayfield’s professional career was rocky.

The Cleveland Browns selected Mayfield with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, and he got off to a promising start with the franchise, leading it to its first playoff win since 1994. But after only four seasons with the Browns, they traded for quarterback Deshaun Watson, and Mayfield subsequently requested his release.

Mayfield split time between the Carolina Panthers and the Los Angeles Rams in 2022 before signing with the Buccaneers ahead of the 2023 season. The quarterback led the Bucs to back-to-back NFC South titles in his first two seasons before failing to reach the playoffs in 2025.

As an NFL player, Mayfield’s best football has been played in Tampa Bay. He sees the city as a second home, so he hopes that he and the franchise can work out a new deal to keep him in Florida.

“I think both sides want to get it done,” Mayfield said. “They’ve treated me right. It’s the first place I’ve been that feels like Oklahoma when it comes to football. It’s a great place.”