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Despite being selected as the #1 overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft by the Cleveland Browns, former University of Oklahoma Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Baker Mayfield now finds himself on his fourth team in two years.
After being traded to the Carolina Panthers last summer, Mayfield lasted just a few months with the Panthers before he was released, which then led to him signing with the Los Angeles Rams.
Mayfield actually wound up starting in a handful of games for the Rams and actually played quite well as he completed 63% of his passes for 850 yards, four touchdowns, and two interceptions.
Due to the expiration of his contract, though, Mayfield found himself as a free agent this offseason and ultimately didn’t sign with the Rams, but rather with the Tampa Bay Bucs in order to take over the starting QB job vacated by the legendary Tom Brady.
Despite not resigning with the Rams, Mayfield clearly still appreciates his time there, as the 28-year-old signal-caller told reporters early this week that his time in Los Angeles “kind of hit the reset button” on his spiraling career.
“I’m a firm believer that everything happens for a reason. It was the first time I had fun playing football in a few years,” Mayfield told the New York Post. “It brought that feeling of having that success and really remembering what it was all about, Kind of hit the reset button for me.”
Assuming Mayfield is the team’s starting quarterback when the 2023 season begins, he’ll make his Tampa Bay Buccaneers debut on Sunday, September 10 on the road at the Minnesota Vikings.
With all four NFC South teams having new starting quarterbacks, the division is considered to be one of the most wide-open in the NFL, which means Mayfield truly has a chance to get his career back on track if he’s able to lead the Bucs to a division title in the wake of Brady’s retirement.