For months, Baker Mayfield and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have been trying to hammer out an extension, with reports finally coming out that the quarterback will play this season and become a free agent. Mayfield is in the final year of a three-year deal worth $100 million, and will count for nearly $40 million against the team’s 2026 salary cap. Why weren’t the two sides able to reach an accord?
Mayfield has certainly earned an extension. Over the past two seasons, he has a completion percentage of 67.4 (7th in the NFL among two-year starters), averaged 241 yards per game (8th), thrown for 67 touchdowns (2nd), and has a passer rating of 98.9 (10th). Altogether, the former number one overall pick is a top-10 quarterback in the league, so he should get a top-10 extension to match.
Mayfield is 31 years old, and the average age of the top 10 highest-paid signal-callers in the NFL is 30.3, so he’s right in the wheelhouse. The average contract length for those players is 4.6 years, and the average total value of their deals is $258.2 million ($56.1 million AACV). This means the two sides should have had no issue putting together a deal in the vicinity of four years and $220 million, with $135 million guaranteed. It would run through his age-35 season, but allow them to part ways after two seasons with minimal financial damage.
The reason Mayfield and the Bucs reached an impasse is that Tampa Bay wants to rebuild next year. They missed the playoffs last season, Mike Evans is gone, Chris Godwin is next, and Vita Vea has demanded a trade. It’s time to start all over, ideally with a new young quarterback. Their timing could not have been better, because the 2027 class has anywhere from five to 10 players who could be picked in the first round of the NFL Draft, with another half dozen right behind them in round two.
If the Bucs are going to rebuild, their future man under center is going to be 22, not 32. Since this is clearly his last season with the team, why keep Mayfield around to potentially spoil things and make the playoffs? The NFC South was won with an 8-9 record in 2025, so they should trade Mayfield now to a team that feels it’s only a quarterback away from the playoffs, and possibly a deep run.
Who Would Trade For Baker Mayfield And Extend Him Immediately?
The Atlanta Falcons and Carolina Panthers make sense. Both teams went 8-9 last season as well, and the Panthers won the division with Bryce Young throwing for under 200 yards per game. Mayfield already had an uneventful stint in Carolina, so he may not want to play there, and that feeling could be mutual. The team does have a solid offense, though, and the defense is better than it lets on. They could be a solid quarterback from 11-6.
The Falcons brought in Tua Tagovailoa to compete with Michael Penix at quarterback, in what might be the ugliest QB competition in the preseason. They have Bijan Robinson, Drake London, and just locked up Kyle Pitts. These are the kinds of explosive weapons that would allow a decent quarterback to throw for 4500 yards or more. The problem with the Panthers and Falcons is: would the Bucs trade Mayfield within their own division?
The Minnesota Vikings have already cut bait with their first-round pick from two years ago and brought Kyler Murray in, not to compete for the starting spot, but to have it the day he arrived in the building. He’s on a small deal, though, and could be easily replaced by Mayfield, who has all the tools to get Minnesota back to 14-3, their record under Sam Darnold.
The Pittsburgh Steelers make all the sense in the world. This is a team that refuses to rebuild. It’s playoffs or bust every year, which is why they brought Aaron Rodgers back on a one-year deal instead of trusting one of their young arms. Mayfield is better than Pittsburgh’s entire QB room combined, and the team would love to give him a three- or four-year extension to keep their playoff window open.
The dark horse suitor would be the Arizona Cardinals. They just drafted an amazing running back in Jeremiyah Love, and have a great group of players for any quarterback to throw to (Marvin Harrison Jr, Michael Wilson, Trey McBride). The new head coach is offense-minded, a nd believes in the talent on his roster enough to give Jacoby Brissett $15 million for a season. It’s the toughest division in football, but Mayfield could put them at the top of it with what they have to offer.
At the end of the day, if the Bucs are going to tank for a young quarterback in the 2027 draft, then they need to put all their chips in the middle of the table. They wouldn’t get much more than a third- or fourth-round pick for Mayfield, but the real victory would be their 4-win season after trading him.
