Getty Baker Mayfield will face Nick Bosa again on Sunday.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield didn’t recall the moment the flag was raised at Ohio State, but he did acknowledge a renewed rivalry with San Francisco 49ers defensive lineman Nick Bosa.
Mayfield raised a flag on the Buckeyes’ turf in 2017 after his Oklahoma Sooners won in Columbus, Ohio. Bosa, who played for the Ohio State squad, rebounded against Mayfield in the NFL in 2019, when he sacked Mayfield twice.
“No, I mean, I only played against him a couple of times,” Mayfield told reporters on Wednesday, November 15, about Bosa’s trash-talking. “The first year, definitely – that was his rookie year. But it’s fun. He’s a good guy, obviously a great competitor and a stud. He’s one of those challenges that you look forward to and compete with.”
Mayfield, then quarterback of the Cleveland Browns, had a tough time against Bosa, going 8-22 passing and two interceptions. Bosa told reporters on Tuesday, Nov. 14, that he tangled with Mayfield that day.
“I kind of tried to talk. “I don’t normally talk,” Bosa said. “But he had this game under control. But he didn’t say a word back. … I screamed his name, like, ‘Baaaakerrr… Baaaaakerrrr… Are you good?’ ‘Come pick it up, we want a challenge.’ Stuff like that. He just looked at me like…”
Mayfield knows he has a big challenge ahead of him against the Niners team that defeated the Buccaneers 37-7 last year. This is what happened with Tom Brady as the Buccaneers quarterback.
“Their defense overall is studded all around. [We’ve] Of course I had to know about their lightning packages [we] I just need to take care of the front line in general,” Mayfield said. “That’s their starting point and it allows the linebackers, who are both studs, to play pretty freely.”
Baker Mayfield breaks silence on contract extension speculation
Mayfield has a one-year, $4 million contract with the Buccaneers and will become a free agent next March. Speculation about whether the Buccaneers will extend his contract arose given his solid play and the team’s 4-5 record.
“Not that I’m deserted. For me, I just take it one game at a time and the rest takes care of itself,” Mayfield said.
Since signing in March, Mayfield has transformed his career with the Buccaneers. He completes 64.6% of his passes and has 2,143 yards for 14 touchdowns versus five interceptions and a quarterback rating of 93.7.
Baker Mayfield found a fit of now in Tampa Bay
Mayfield, a former No. 1 draft pick, appears to be on track to match or exceed his career highs in 2020 with the Browns, when he led the team to the playoffs. Since then, Mayfield’s career took a downturn as he was traded to the Carolina Panthers in 2022, followed by a release and a brief stint with the Los Angeles Rams, but he found his place in Tampa Bay.
“Absolutely. I’ve said it time and time again and it’s not going to change, just the organization as a whole since I came in – it’s been really clear what they want to achieve and where we’re going, and while these games have gone offensively for us, “We have evolved within the system,” said Mayfield.
“It was, ‘This is where we want to be and this is what we want to achieve.’ If it’s clear and concise, I can definitely adapt. We’re all just trying to get better every day on offense and continue to improve,” Mayfield continued. “Now we have a better opponent to compete against and see what we’re made of.”
Matthew Davis covers the NFL for Heavy.com, focusing on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, New England Patriots and San Francisco 49ers. He has also covered prep sports in Minnesota as a writer for the StarTribune since 2016. More about Matthew Davis