Grading the move: Why the Bucs gave Baker Mayfield the largest contract in franchise history

• Jenna Laine

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  Jenna Laine

  ESPN Staff Writer

  Jenna Laine covers the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for ESPN. She started covering the Bucs for ESPN in 2016, but she has covered the team since 2009. Jenna is a former cheerleader at the University of South Florida and speaks to the consistency of the program as being one of the top best in the nation.
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• Jeremy Fowler

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  Jeremy Fowler

  senior NFL national reporter

  Jeremy Fowler is a senior national NFL writer for ESPN, covering the entire league including breaking news. Jeremy also contributes to SportsCenter both as a studio analyst and a sideline reporter covering for NFL games. He is an Orlando, Florida native who joined ESPN in 2014 after covering college football for CBSSports.com.
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• Ben Solak

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  Ben Solak

  ESPN

  Ben Solak joined ESPN in 2024 as a national NFL analyst. He previously covered the NFL at The Ringer, Bleeding Green Nation and The Draft Network.

Sep 8, 2026, 07:16 PM ET

It was a surprise, but the Tampa Bay Buccaneers now have their quarterback locked in through the 2029 season after giving Baker Mayfield a three-year, $165 million extension Monday -- the largest contract in the franchise's history.

The Bucs offered a two-year extension, according to sources, but the two sides could not reach an agreement before Mayfield's mandated training camp deadline. But all of that has changed for the 2018 No. 1 overall pick.

Mayfield enters Year 4 in Tampa after signing a one-year, $4 million worth up to $8.5 million in 2023. In 2024, the Bucs gave Mayfield a three-year deal for $100 million in total and $50 million guaranteed.

Now, they lock their guy up again, but what does this mean for the future? Buccaneers reporter Jenna Laine, national reporter Jeremy Fowler and NFL analyst Ben Solak dish on the happenings surrounding this deal five days before Tampa Bay kicks off its season at the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday (1 p.m. ET, FOX).

Mayfield and the Bucs couldn't come to terms during camp. What changed?

A deadline. Mayfield wanted to cut off talks at the start of camp, but he never shut down the possibility of the Bucs trying again. In recent days, Tampa offered a deal that gave Mayfield two things he wanted: an agreement longer than two years, which was a sticking point originally, and average pay of $55 million per year, in line with Jacksonville's Trevor Lawrence and Green Bay's Jordan Love. He felt that he had performed well enough to enter that salary tier. Tampa Bay's willingness to put him there helped facilitate a deal. Per sources, after the Bucs' final contract offer of two years and just north of $100 million, the two sides stopped talking. But those talks resumed over the weekend. -- Fowler and Laine

What does this mean for Mayfield and the Bucs this season?

The Bucs entered training camp with, not one but two disgruntled team captains in Mayfield and defensive tackle Vita Vea. Mayfield practiced but Vea actually held in by not practicing (he was also dealing with a back injury) and he requested a trade. Those are not ideal circumstances entering a season and trying to get back into the playoffs after missing them for the first time since 2020 last year.

They re-signed Vea last month, and in locking in Mayfield now, they not only avoided a season-long distraction -- although Mayfield has been very good in tuning it out -- but what is likely a much higher price tag in the coming months. You have to consider how much the market will change with several QBs being in line next year, plus a rising salary cap. Multiple agents told ESPN to believe today's $50 million will be $60 million tomorrow. Mayfield has said he does not need financial incentivization to play better. He'll always seek ways to motivate himself. As his high school coach Hank Carter told ESPN, "His grease is always hot."

This can put to rest some of the concerns GM Jason Licht faced during training camp about a potential decline in the team's culture -- between these two deals not getting done and the departure of Mike Evans and retirement of Lavonte David. Licht responded to that saying, "Not at all. ... I feel like the culture is maybe at one of its highest points." This helps reaffirm that. -- Laine

What does this mean for C.J. Stroud, Bryce Young and other QBs awaiting new deals?

Not much. The overall quarterback market remains relatively unchanged, and Houston is comfortable placing Stroud in the $50-million-and-up club that 13 quarterbacks now occupy. Mayfield has a proven statistical track record, whereas with Stroud, Houston must decide how far they are willing to go to prevent Stroud from playing out his rookie deal, which he seems comfortable doing. Stroud, Young and others know that the market will balloon next offseason, when several stars from the 2024 draft class are eligible for new deals and Lamar Jackson could look for his next contract. -- Fowler

How would you grade the Mayfield extension?

B: Mayfield is a playmaker with high peaks (he was producing at top-of-the-league levels for stretches of 2024 and 2025) but low valleys (injuries and overaggressive play create big mistakes). He's obviously a good enough quarterback to extend, but now must deliver the high-level, veteran consistency of a Jared Goff or Brock Purdy (both $53 million APY) in order to return value on this deal. This looks like a reasonable, market-rate deal for the Buccaneers. What will be interesting to see is how much guaranteed money is in the final year of the contract, as the Bucs were reportedly pushing for a two-year deal at first before capitulating to the three-year extension. -- Solak