Biggest Buccaneers Takeaways From Jason Licht On Baker Mayfield, Vita Vea

TAMPA, FL — The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are in the midst of training camp, and while much of the focus should be on what's happening on the field as the team looks to get back to the postseason, it's all been on the futures of Baker Mayfield and Vita Vea.

Both Mayfield and Vea have sought out new contracts, and in Vea's case, even a potential trade, but they both seemed primed to at least play one more season in Tampa Bay.

Mayfield has shut down talks as he is all about ball now that we have reached camp and Vea hasn't practiced since his trade request and subsequent tweaked back.

Following Thursday's practice, we heard from general manager Jason Licht for the first time, and while he didn't give many more updates on either situation, there were some important takeaways.

Jason Licht Opens Up About Baker Mayfield's Contract Talks

“Baker is all ball. He is all focused on the season," Licht said. "I am expecting him to have a great year. We respect the fact that he had a timetable for it. On my end, I’ll always keep the door open on this situation. But he’s very, very, very focused – I’ve never seen him this focused.”

Mayfield made it very clear from the outset that talks regarding a new contract would end once training camp began, so that he could focus on being the best version of himself as the team heads into the season.

It appears that the team is respecting that, with Licht leaving the door open for further discussions if Mayfield's side were to want to resume talks.

Mayfield made things even clearer from his perspective on the situation, which apparently didn't sit well with ownership, but Licht says he understands his frustrations.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers QB Baker Mayfiel — Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield (6) Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

“Well Baker, as we all know here, is a very fiery competitor that is not afraid to speak his mind," Licht continued. "I know he was disappointed [and] frustrated, and we were too. But, like I said, we’re in a good place. He is focused on having the best year of his career.”

It is frustrating for both sides when things can't get hashed out, and both sides have every right to be upset with how things have unfolded up to this point.

Licht continued to discuss things surrounding Mayfield. He refused to get into specifics on how far apart the two sides were, but reiterated the fact that they still view him as the team's franchise quarterback.

“I’m not going to get into specifics about the contract and all that stuff, but yeah, we do think he is [a franchise quarterback]. We love Baker. Our feelings for Baker haven’t changed.”

Perhaps lost in Licht's comments on Mayfield's situation is the fact that he confirmed that the franchise tag is definitely an option following the 2026 season, despite wanting to get a contract extension done.

“The franchise tag is a tool. It’s an option," Licht said. "It’s not necessarily something you want to plan on doing, but you have to in this business – you have to plan on things. One hundred different things can go 100 different directions, but it is an option, and we could plan and we could do it.”

Jason Licht Speaks On Vita Vea's Situation

Licht began talking about Vea's situation by addressing his potential return to practice as he deals with a "tweaked back" before getting to what everyone wants to know.

“He’s got a minor thing right now and we don’t want to make it a major thing. I don’t want to deal with hypotheticals right now, but he’s got a minor thing and we’re trying to take care of our players,” Licht said.

The hope is that Vea will return to the field sooner rather than later, but his injury might not be what keeps him off the field — rather, his want to be paid like one of the best defensive tackles in the league and subsequent trade request.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers DT Vita Vea — Tampa Bay Buccaneers defensive tackle Vita Vea (50) Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

When speaking on whether or not the relationship with Vea could be salvaged at this point, Licht believes that it can be.

“Yeah, we love Vita. We’ve been engaged with his agent recently," Licht said. "I don’t know how it’s going to end, but we’ve been engaged and that’s at least some progress.”

Licht also went on to explain that they have been receiving calls on Vea. He noted this is something that happens all the time before explaining that he has absolutely no plans on trading him and that he hopes Vea takes the field for the Bucs this season and beyond.

“So, this time of year, we get calls – not just me, but my staff – on lots of players. Without getting specific, there [are] a lot of teams [reaching out]," Licht explained. "We do the same thing with other teams for multiple positions. I’m not being specific here with D-line – all positions – but yeah, you get calls all the time.”

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