Bucs don't have the draft position to nab any of the highly regarded QBs and Baker played pretty well for them so I would guess he resigns with the Bucs. The only but would be if they find themselves too far apart on the money, signing bonus, guarantees, length of contract etc which is a possibility.
i think Baker has a limited market for term and $$$ as in signing bonus stuff. Wonder if Baker wants the starting part enough for 3 years at 75 with 35 in the bank if he sucks to stay in Tampa.
BM is an average to slightly above average NFL QB with flashes of greatness. He came off the bench last year after 2 days on the job and led the Rams to 2 TDs in the last 5 minutes of the game to beat the Raiders...the last 98 yards TD drive with 1:40 and no timeouts was epic.
No way he gets only 10-20M/year. I'll be stunned if he doesn't get at least 30M/yr.
I'm glad his coach let the clock run out as I had $300 live bet on the Bucs +9.5 when the Lions was leading 10-3 early in the second quarter. I would have lost the bet had the Bucs forced the Lions to kick the FG.I don’t know about Mayfield, but his coach has a loser’s attitude.
Bucs' Bowles on no last timeout: 'Game was over'
Coach Todd Bowles said he didn't use the Bucs' final timeout against the Lions because he recognized "the game was over."www.espn.com
Instead of forcing a field goal attempt or punt from the Lions, he decided to let the clock run out because the game was over. He did the same thing in the regular season. If the Lions missed, he’d have 30 seconds to score a touchdown and 2pt conversion to send into overtime.
It’s the freakin’
Mayfield is a good player and in last year's market he'd be worth $25M. It isn't last year's market. There are 0 quality QBs expected to leave the market and there are 6 QBs expected to be picked in the top 50 picks. The market for top quality QBs will be strong. The market for rookie contract players will be strong. The starting QB market for the remaining QBs will be depressed. There aren't many QBs in the $12-28M prove-it range. I believe there will be a significant market adjustment due to high supply and low demand.
Really, who else is in the Mayfield salary/FA arena? Jimmy G, Tannehill, Rudolph, Mariota? I mean, they aren't unproven youngsters and they aren't clearly washed up oldsters. They are more the bridge-type QB that can get you some NFL-level offense. Honestly, Baker might be in the best position of all of them, having taken the Bucs to the playoffs--since the others there have all been benched in favor of an unproven youngster. He'll easily get 30M/yr from the Bucs imo.
I think he will get at least 30 mil too. I estimated a little high on my earlier post at 35-40/ yr but the Bucs will very likely offer him a 3 year deal at 100 mil+. None of those other bridge QBs are really an option for Tampa and he seems to be a good fit there.
I think Baker would be much better if he had a decent Oline. The Browns (when he was there) and the Bucs Oline were average at best, Panthers was bad and the Rams last year was basically made of their second and third strings as they were hit with the injury bug.
Yeah, I kinda throw out the whole Panthers thing. That team is a total dumpster fire. He was under pressure all game vs. the Lions and was making throws all over the place that only a handful of guys make. The guy is tough as nails and not afraid and I think everybody on that team respects the hell out of him. A good Oline and Baker can be a solid starter. I also think all those troubles he's gone through and having to fight back to prove himself were the best thing that could have happened to him.
Tampa had a top 10 OL in PFF rankings.
There are 22 teams pretty much locked into their current QBs. The safe play for Seattle is to retain Smith which leaves 9 teams looking for a QB. The Bears, Commanders, Patriots, and Steelers aren't in the market for a big money FA QB. 1 of the remaining 5 will get Cousins. The smart play for the remaining 4, (plus the Steelers), is to compete for #4-6 ranked QB rookies rather than overpay for a FA QB. Those unsuccessful, (excluding the Steelers), should then compete for Mayfield, Wilson, Tannehill, consider a trade for Fields or Howell, or sign a very cheap placeholder. Buyer's market. Sure, a team could preempt the Draft situation and pay Mayfield $30M, but it'll get the GM fired after the season.
Yeah, Seattle will roll out Geno for one more year but I fully expect them to try and draft their QB of the future. Drew Lock isn't it, regardless of what some people may think. It's just a matter of if Seattle can draft the right kid and how that kid develops. As for Baker, I honestly don't think other teams will get a chance. I truly believe Tampa's F.O. and Baker's agent sit down and they ink a deal soon. As for the other so-called starters out there, Tannehill and Russ are washed, plain and simple. Neither one is any good at this point. Fields is obviously the wild card in the mix because he's so young and so athletically gifted. Someone will trade for him and think they can fix his issues but I think they will fail because his brain is just too slow for pro football. Howell might be a back-up in the Drew Lock mold. Way too erratic and careless with the ball but has flashes. Cousins maybe the only unknown out there and the domino that needs to fall. Minny will probably ink him to yet another deal.
Totally agree DGF but would add in that QB regression also comes because of circumstances around the QB. Seattle had a lot of problems outside of Geno Smith this year which is why they had to let Pete go in the end. Geno was what he was and not good enough to overcome the weak play around him. I think Mayfield will be in a similar situation. WR's not as good as they were, Oline weaker, etc. Tampa also needs to address their lack of a real running game. So yeah, not expecting anything much different or some miraculous run.
Absolutely. Just because they're are 9 teams with an immediate need for QB doesn't mean the 6 top rookies will go to 6 of those 9 teams. The Seahawks will be in play for a rookie QB. They may even be in play for a trade up to #2 or #3.
