Baker Mayfield had the best season of his entire career with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2023 and ultimately led the team to a playoff victory, but it sounds like the team has decided not to use its franchise tag to ensure that the quarterback will remain with them during the 2024 NFL season.
According to a report from Tampa Bay Buccaneers beat writer Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times, the team has decided not to use its franchise tag on quarterback Baker Mayfield and will instead use it on safety Antoine Winfield Jr.
“As the two-week window opens Tuesday for teams to apply the franchise player tag, Winfield is expected to be given that designation should the Bucs opt to use it this year. The projected value for a franchise player at safety is $16.2 million, according to Spotrac,” Stroud wrote for the Tampa Bay Times.
This means that Mayfield is now set to become an unrestricted free agent and will be free to sign anywhere he would like. As Stroud points out, though, Tampa Bay will still be a top option.
“The Bucs have been open about their desire to re-sign Mayfield, who passed for a career-high 4,044 yards and 28 touchdowns in his first season with the team,” Stroud wrote.
“Mayfield also has indicated he wants to remain here. The Bucs took a big first step by hiring Kentucky offensive coordinator Liam Coen, who worked with Mayfield as the Rams passing game coordinator after the quarterback was clamed off waivers and spent the final five weeks in Los Angeles in the 2022 season.”
According to Stroud, a big reason why the team chose not to use the franchise tag on Mayfield is that it would cost more than $36 million. So now, they’ll risk losing him in free agency.
