Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield was absolutely floored by his new contract extension, telling ESPN’s Peter Schrager he was “caught off guard” by the three-year, $165 million deal he just signed earlier this week. Imagine signing the biggest contract in franchise history and finding out about the final negotiations from your wife after a Monday night phone call!
Done Pacing the House: Baker’s Big Surprise
Mayfield had literally checked out of the whole negotiation game when training camp started. He told Schrager on ESPN’s Big Day, “I started training camp. I told my agent, ‘Listen, I’m done talking about it. I’m done pacing the house thinking about it, unless there’s something that you guys talk about and it’s worth bringing to my attention.’” Talk about delegating! Turns out, his agent took that to heart. Mayfield shared that his agent reached out to him and his wife Emily on Monday night around 6 p.m., revealing talks had been happening since late last week. “Which was news to me, so caught me off guard as well. He presented a couple options, and went from there,” Mayfield added. The man literally agreed to the final terms while watching a re-release of the movie *Cars* with teammates and their families. That’s a level of chill we can all aspire to. The Bucs officially announced the signing on Tuesday around 6 p.m.
Franchise Record Money: Baker’s New Tier
This isn’t just any contract, it’s the largest in Buccaneers franchise history. The deal puts Mayfield right up there with the league’s top-tier quarterbacks like Joe Burrow, Josh Allen, Jordan Love, Trevor Lawrence, and Matthew Stafford, matching their $55 million in annual average salary. On top of the $40 million in guaranteed money he was already set to earn this season, the new contract tacks on an additional $110 million in new guarantees. That’s a total of $150 million guaranteed for the guy who wasn’t even aware his agent was still negotiating. Talk about a pleasant surprise, right? He’s about to kick off the 2026 season against Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati Bengals this Sunday at 1 p.m. ET, and you can bet all eyes will be on how he performs with that massive new deal in his pocket.
Lumen Field Roars as Hawks Grab a Win
Speaking of what matters right now in the NFL, the Emerald City just got a huge early-season boost! Our Seahawks pulled off a gritty 13-10 victory over the New England Patriots at Lumen Field. That’s a W to kick things off! However, the news isn’t all sunshine and rainbows for our boys. Bleacher Report is already flagging that our QB Sam Darnold is expected to miss Week 2. That’s a tough break so early in the season, and it means Coach Mike Macdonald and OC Brian Fleury will have to scheme things up without Darnold under center for at least the next game. It’s a reminder of how quickly things can change in this league, especially when you’re looking to build momentum.
So while Baker Mayfield is celebrating his unexpected windfall and getting ready to prove he’s worth every penny against the Bengals, our Hawks are already facing some adversity with Darnold on the sidelines. We got the win against the Patriots, but now we gotta see how the team responds next week. This early season, every game matters, and how our guys adapt without Darnold is going to tell us a lot about what kind of fight this team has. Get ready, 12s, it’s gonna be a wild ride!
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Bleacher Report.
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