Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield threw three touchdowns in Detroit on Sunday, but his final pass was intercepted by Derrick Barnes with just over a minute to play and the Bucs lost 31-23.
Mayfield joined the Bucs as a one-year free agent last year and his first season was a big rebound after a few down years with the Browns, Panthers and Rams. Mayfield threw for 4,044 yards and 28 touchdowns during the regular season and then threw for 337 yards and three touchdowns in a playoff win over the Eagles.
After the game, head coach Todd Bowles said Mayfield “definitely earned a new contract” and Mayfield said he liked the idea of playing another year on offense.
“I love this group,” Mayfield said via the team’s website. “I’ve said that all year and it’s authentic. It would mean a lot to me to bring back a lot of important pieces, put everything back together and move into the second year of the system. I feel like we could make a lot of progress. I would love it. Of course we’ll see how it turns out, but I can’t say enough about this organization and the opportunity they gave me this year.”
Bowles said, “It's too early to talk about Mayfield's next contract,” but it probably won't be long before it's a major topic of conversation in Tampa.