Baker Mayfield has owned the spotlight around the Buccaneers for weeks, and the contract noise only got louder over the past week. The extension talks with Jason Licht didn’t land, even though nearly every NFL insider had expected a deal to get done, leaving Mayfield closer than ever to a possible exit from Tampa Bay in 2026.
That drama, though, is also casting a light on something the Buccaneers can feel better about after the offseason: the backup quarterback spot.
Last season showed exactly why that position matters. When Mayfield went down with a shoulder injury, Tampa Bay had to lean on Teddy Bridgewater, a name that still carries weight around the league because of his past as a starter for the Minnesota Vikings before a devastating knee injury. But the reputation didn’t match the reality once he was forced into action against the Los Angeles Rams.
Bridgewater “looked horrendous out there,” and he was “barely mobile.” He came off like a quarterback who “did not even bother to study the opponent,” and his play was so “sluggish and inaccurate” that he “may as well have been chugging beers on the couch that Sunday night.”
That experience pushed the Bucs toward a younger option, and Jake Browning now looks like the player they can actually trust if Mayfield misses time again. He is obviously no threat to Baker, but Tampa Bay needs a backup who can keep the offense moving if the starter goes down.
JoeBucsFan recently offered strong praise for the free-agent pickup from the Cincinnati Bengals, pointing in particular to Browning’s arm strength while hitting Tez Johnson, Ted Hurst, and Emeka Egbuka downfield.
That matters because the Buccaneers offense under Zac Robinson is going to be very vertical. Browning is not Mayfield, but he does appear far better equipped than Bridgewater to handle the deep-ball demands of the system if the No. 1 quarterback is sidelined.
In Other News...
Buccaneers May Already Be Eyeing Life After Baker Mayfield
Baker Mayfields contract situation has already pushed the Buccaneers into an uncomfortable question about what comes next at quarterback. Even with Mayfield still in place for now, the team is in a spot where it has to keep one eye on the future, especially if his time in Tampa Bay does not extend beyond 2027.
That is where the 2027 NFL Draft starts to loom as a possible pivot point. Tampa Bay is being connected to a handful of college passers who could shape that conversation, including Drew Mestemaker, Darian Mensah, Jayden Maiava, LaNorris Sellers and Julian Sayin, a group that gives the Buccaneers options if they decide the eventual answer under center might not already be on the roster. [Read more 🡒]
National Take On Todd Bowles Echoes What Bucs Fans Fear Most
Bill Simmons took a hard line on Todd Bowles this week, saying he does not have much confidence in the Buccaneers coach and suggesting Bowles should be among the first names considered if teams start making changes. Even so, Simmons still picked Tampa Bay to win the NFC South, pointing to the talent on the roster and the general softness of the division as reasons the Bucs can still come out on top.
For Tampa Bay fans, that split view probably feels familiar. The roster has enough quality to keep the team in the conversation, but Bowles remains under a harsh spotlight after last season, and the doubts around his performance are not going away just because the division looks manageable. The Bucs may have the pieces to hang around, but the bigger question is whether the coaching can match them when it matters. [Read more 🡒]
Bucs Made One Draft Choice That Will Fuel Debate For Years
The Buccaneers latest behind-the-scenes draft video added a little more context to one of the most debated decisions of their 2026 class. During the war room footage, Tampa Bay showed it had a chance to move back from No. 15 in a deal with the Lions, a reminder that the front office was weighing not just a player, but the value of staying put versus stacking more picks.
In the end, the Bucs passed on the extra draft capital and stayed at 15 to take Rueben Bain Jr., a choice that makes sense when viewed through how highly they had him graded. The video only deepens the debate because it confirms Tampa Bay had real options on the table, and it also shows the franchise was willing to trust its board and chase a player it clearly believed was worth more than the trade-down package. [Read more 🡒]