Tez Johnson is quickly becoming a fan-favorite member of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He showed up in a big-time moment on Sunday and then he made people laugh with an honest moment in the locker room.
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He heard "MVP" chants from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers fans, and he thought the chants were directed at him. This created some sideline confusion for the rookie.
"This is crazy," Johnson said in the locker room after the game. "When I scored, and I heard 'MVP' chant, I'm thinking they're talking about me. So I asked (Sterling Shepard). I'm like, 'Shep, they was chanting MVP?' He was like, 'Yeah.'
"I was like, 'I ain't do nothing this year.' And then he was like, 'They talking about Baker, Tez.' I was like, 'Well, that explains it.'"
Tez Mania is running wild in our Game Ball segment💨@JamieErdahl | #WeAreTheKrewe pic.twitter.com/Z1mgecWOk8
— Good Morning Football (@gmfb) October 13, 2025
The seventh-round draft pick out of Oregon had only one catch against the San Francisco 49ers, but it became a major moment in the game. He plucked a Mayfield overthrow out of the air and then survived contact with the ground to complete the process of the catch.
He scored a 45-yard touchdown that helped the Buccaneers extend their lead to 27-19 in the fourth quarter. Johnson then followed this up by doing a somersault into a spinning flip. Chase McLaughlin then nailed a late field goal late to put the game away for good.
Johnson had to step into action due to injuries ravaging the Buccaneers roster. Neither Mike Evans nor Chris Godwin played on Sunday against the 49ers. Fellow rookie Emeka Egbuka exited the game with a hamstring injury that put more pressure on the rest of the pass-catchers.
They all stepped up as Mayfield continued putting up strong numbers. The veteran quarterback threw for two touchdowns on the day, taking his season total to 12. He also guided the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to their fifth win of the season, keeping them two games ahead of the Carolina Panthers in the battle for the NFC South.
"But he is the MVP," Johnson said about Mayfield. "The one (play) he got the first down on — he said he blacked out — but I mean, that's just Baker. The pump fake got everybody.
"It's just like, 'Oh my God,' he's a dawg. I don't know what he (put) in his cereal before the game, but that guy on it every single week."
