During a Monday appearance on SiriusXM NFL Radio, quarterback Baker Mayfield explained how “the leadership in the locker room” helped the 2023 Tampa Bay Buccaneers earn a playoff berth and a home postseason win after they fell from 3-1 to 4-7.
Unsurprisingly to those who have followed the Buccaneers over the past year, it turns out Mayfield was a big part of that leadership group.
“He kept everybody positive, everybody loose,” Buccaneers general manager Jason Licht said about Mayfield while speaking with SiriusXM NFL Radio, as shared by the JoeBucsFan website. “And he fought his a– off for every yard he threw for or rushed for. Everybody just jumped on the bandwagon with him. He was basically saying, ‘Come with me. Let’s go win. Let’s go turn this around and I will buy drinks at the bar at the end of the day.’ Everybody kind of bought into that.”
Buccaneers senior advisor Bruce Arians previously hinted that Mayfield and head coach Todd Bowles both could’ve been shown the door this offseason had they not guided Tampa Bay to wins across five of the club’s final six regular-season contests. Bowles‘ 2022 Buccaneers finished with a record of 8-9 before they were smashed by the Dallas Cowboys in the wild-card round of the playoffs, but 9-8 Tampa Bay notched an impressive 32-9 wild-card victory over the Philadelphia Eagles in January of this year.
Licht also praised Bowles during the interview for never getting “too emotional, one way or the other” through the ups and downs the Buccaneers experienced last season.
“Todd, our head coach, does a great job of being the same every day, steading the ship,” Licht mentioned.
The vibes within the Buccaneers are understandably high after Licht did well to largely keep the band together via deals that included the signing of Mayfield to a new three-year contract. With that said, some believe rumors about the club parting ways with Mayfield and/or Bowles early next year could hover over the organization if Tampa Bay enters its Week 11 bye in November with a losing record.
It’s unclear if living legend Bill Belichick would be interested in possibly replacing Bowles come January 2025, but logic suggests Belichick won’t turn down any interview requests after he failed to land a coaching job this past winter.
