The Tampa Bay Buccaneers improved to 4-1 for the season with a thrilling 38-35 victory over the Seattle Seahawks at Lumen Field on Sunday. The 30-year-old Baker Mayfield was once again the star of the show, finishing with 29/33 completions alongside 379 yards, two touchdowns and a 134.7 passer rating.
As a result, the quarterback has now led the Bucs to four game-winning scores in the final minute of the fourth quarter in just five games, the most by any team within the first five games since 1970, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter. Mayfield had a season-high 87% completion rate, connecting with Sterling Shepard on an 11-yard touchdown with just over a minute remaining to tie things up before Lavonte David’s interception set up the winning field goal.
“He was sharp. Baker doesn’t try to have two subpar games in a row. He was still [ticked] from last week,” head coach Todd Bowles said after the game, per ESPN. In the Buccaneers’ last game against the Philadelphia Eagles, Mayfield finished with 22/40 completions in what was a tame 31-25 loss. That has been their only loss of the season thus far.
Mayfield connected seven times for 163 yards and a touchdown with rookie Emeka Egbuka, including key completions on both the game-tying and earlier go-ahead drives.
“He’s well-rounded, and not just in football but in life. I think he’s grounded, and I think he’s genuine in everything he does. He’s intentional, and you just don’t see that often,” the two-time Pro Bowl star said about Egbuka afterwards.
The rookie himself praised Mayfield’s ability to come up clutch, claiming that every team needs “someone at quarterback that has that capability, and Baker has that for sure.”
While the late-game execution has been impressive, the Bucs will be hoping to take control of games quicker. The Buccaneers will now take on the San Francisco 49ers, who have also started the season 4-1.
