Baker Mayfield knows how it feels to be cast aside. But the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' quarterback is off to a hot start today, and through two weeks, would be in the running for NFL MVP.
Again, though, it wasn't always this way. Mayfield, a former No. 1 overall pick, was traded by the Cleveland Browns to the Carolina Panthers in 2022, so the Browns could make room for Deshaun Watson. (We will refrain from commenting on how that move has worked out for the Browns so far.)
Anyway, Mayfield was eventually dumped by the Panthers, picked up by the Los Angeles Rams, then hit free agency before the start of last season, signing with the Buccaneers as the replacement for the retired Tom Brady. Basically, it's been a long road to here for Mayfield.
Now, like the rest of the NFL, he's witnessed the struggles of Panthers QB Bryce Young, the first overall pick of the 2023 draft. Young has been benched after two games and tons of struggles. Mayfield knows what it's like, and offered some strong words of encouragement.
"Obviously [my career] didn't happen in the same time frame as Bryce, but quarterback is hard, especially for young guys when you're not surrounded with the pieces ... and you're not given the opportunity to have success," Mayfield said, via Jenna Laine of ESPN.
"A lot of time, guys have the talent, they might have the brains, but they don't have the right opportunity or the right fit. I'm sitting here right now in a way better fit than the other places I've been. That's not to put other teams down. But it's a matter of the pieces around you, the coaches. And for Bryce, a guy that — I can relate to this — finding that belief within yourself again. He'll get it. His story is far, far from finished."
Mayfield is on top. Young is far from there at the moment. But as Mayfield suggested, it's only a moment, and if anyone should know, it's Mayfield.
