Baker Mayfield isn’t playing like a $55 million quarterback with Buccaneers off to 0-2 start

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Baker Mayfield is playing more like a quarterback trying to justify his contract.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are off to their first 0-2 start since 2014 after making Mayfield the highest-paid player in franchise history.

Mayfield received a $165 million, three-year extension earlier this month and seems to be trying to do too much, leading to mistakes.

Emeka Egbuka had a step on the defender and was open in the end zone for what would’ve been a go-ahead score in the final minute but Mayfield fired a pass out of his reach and the Buccaneers lost 23-19 to the Cleveland Bowns on Sunday.

“Obviously, just gotta trust that ‘Mek’ is going to come out of that break a little slower with conditions and give him some air to run under it,” Mayfield said.

He threw a fade to Ted Hurst earlier in the drive but the rookie couldn’t make the catch in a driving rain.

“Yeah, obviously, not an easy catch,” Mayfield said. “Ted is somebody that I trust, that’s not going to change anything for me going forward, but yeah, tough play. I don’t know, I didn’t get a real good look at it, but I know he had a chance at it. The ball is going to keep coming back to him, going to keep finding him. We just gotta be able to make the plays in the end.”

Mayfield forced a throw in the first half that was picked and turned into three points. He took three sacks, had several negative plays and finished 21 of 34 for 182 yards with one touchdown and one interception.

In Week 1, Mayfield lost three fumbles against the Bengals. He has 28 interceptions and 27 fumbles since 2024.

“It’s shooting ourselves in the foot, not making the plays when we need them, knowing that these are fixable things, but that also makes it more frustrating,” Mayfield said. “(We) just gotta get it corrected. We gotta be hard on ourselves, watch the tape, get those things fixed, flush it and move onto the next. (We have) another home game next week against a good opponent.”

The Minnesota Vikings (2-0) visit Raymond James Stadium this week after shutting down Chicago’s high-powered offense in a 9-3 win.

The Buccaneers are 2-9 since a 6-2 start last season. Coach Todd Bowles was on the hot seat entering the season and it’s only getting hotter.

What’s working

The run game was effective at certain points. The Buccaneers rushed for 137 yards, averaging 5.5 yards per carry. Bucky Irving had 89 yards on 17 carries, including a 38-yard scamper.

What needs help

The offensive line struggled. The unit allowed three sacks and had critical holding penalties. Two holding calls on third down negated first downs and derailed drives. Another holding penalty on the final drive moved the ball from the Cleveland 13 to the 23 and the Bucs couldn’t overcome it.

Stock up

OLB David Walker, playing his second game after missing his rookie season, had one sack in nine defensive snaps.

Stock down

Linebacker Alex Anzalone struggled for the second straight week. The veteran has had a rough time replacing Lavonte David. He’s missed tackles, struggled in coverage and had an unnecessary roughness penalty.

Injuries

That’s the lone bright spot. The Bucs are healthy for the most part.

Key number

16%: Over the past five seasons, that’s the percent of teams that made the playoffs after an 0-2 start.

Next steps

The Buccaneers host the Vikings in the middle stretch of three straight home games.

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