Will Baker Mayfield Play in Buccaneers' First Preseason Game vs. Jets?

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have gone through 10 days of training camp, including their joint practice with the New York Jets on Tuesday. After all of that, it's almost time for the team's first preseason game of the year.

The Bucs are set to face the Jets Friday, and when they do so, they'll be looking to evaluate many of their rookies for the first time under the lights. These games can be very important for that evaluation, and as a result, it's also important to make sure other players on the squad can play well enough around them to properly evaluate them.

With that in mind, head coach Todd Bowles has the decision on whether or not to play his starting quarterback in Baker Mayfield. The option is also worth considering in the wake of a potential injury to backup quarterback Jake Browning on Tuesday.

So will the Buccaneers play Mayfield in their first preseason outing this season?

Will Baker Mayfield Play in Tampa Bay's Preseason Game vs. Jets?

Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield (6) participates in training camp at AdventHealth Training Center. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

No, he will not.

Mayfield is not set to play during Tampa Bay's preseason game on Friday against the Jets. Initially, quarterback Jake Browning was set to start that game, but he injured his back during the first day of joint training camp, so his status on Friday is in jeopardy, per the Tampa Bay Times' Rick Stroud.

Bucs No. 2 QB Jake Browning appeared to injure his back. Todd Bowles had no update but Browning was expected to start Friday vs Jets. He said Baker Mayfield will not play.
— Rick Stroud (@NFLSTROUD) August 11, 2026

That makes sense. Mayfield is the team's starting quarterback, and it would be unusual to play him in the first preseason game of the year unless he specifically requested it as some quarterbacks do.

That being said, it will be interesting to see if Mayfield plays during the preseason at all. Last year, he skipped out on preseason entirely — he was slated to play during the team's second week of preseason against the Pittsburgh Steelers last year, but Bowles decided against it at the last minute and did not play him at all during the preseason.

There's a chance that a similar scenario could happen this preseason, too. For now, though, the Bucs will have to figure out what they plan to do on Friday if Browning isn't able to go — reps will be split between QBs Jalon Daniels and Connor Bazelak, if that's the case.

The Bucs play the Jets at 7 p.m. on Friday.

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

Add us as a preferred source on Google