Baker Mayfield signed a one-year contract with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers prior to the start of the season, and that contract offered him the opportunity to compete for the team's starting quarterback position.

Mayfield was guaranteed of nothing after signing his deal. If he had not been good enough to start, head coach Todd Bowles could have named him a backup or possibly cut him from the team. However, Mayfield went from a potential bench warmer looking for a job to a starting quarterback in the NFL.

He led the Bucs to a first-place finish in the NFC South and he followed that successful regular season by leading Tampa Bay to a playoff victory in the Wild Card round over the Philadelphia Eagles. Mayfield threw for 337 yards and 3 TDs in that game.

However, Mayfield and the Bucs fell short in the divisional playoffs after suffering a 31-23 defeat to the Detroit Lions. Mayfield threw a late-game interception when the Bucs were trying to rally in the final minutes.

Despite the interception and the loss, Mayfield would like to be back with the Bucs next season. “I would love that. Who knows how it’s going to play out? But I can’t say enough about this organization and the opportunity it gave me this year. Just thankful.”

Baker Mayfield completed 26 of 41 passes for 349 yards against the Lions. He threw touchdown passes to Mike Evans, Cade Otton and Rachaad White, but he also tossed 2 interceptions. Mayfield was sacked four times in the game and under quite a bit of pressure throughout.