Tampa Bay quarterback Baker Mayfield played like he woke up feeling dangerous as the Bucs bludgeoned the Philadelphia Eagles 32-9 on Monday night to conclude Super Wild Card Weekend.
Mayfield shined, gashing a hapless Philly defense for 337 yards and three TDs, becoming the first Bucs QB in history with 300-plus yards passing and three-plus pass TDs in a playoff game. Mayfield's stats would have been more eye-popping if not for some brutal early drops that kept the game close at halftime, and the blowout would have begun earlier.
"He was sharp. I mean, the whole game he was sharp," Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles said, via the team's official transcript. "Like he said, they dropped some balls but he kept coming back, he kept going to them. He was putting the ball only a place where they could catch it. He didn't turn it over. They kept making play after play after play. He did a hell of a job."
Mayfield joined a Bucs squad this season looking to get its books back in order after overextending during the Tom Brady era. After the struggles of the previous seasons, the former No. 1 overall pick took a prove-it deal with a team with a starter opening. He's proved it in spades.
Mayfield has played superbly, spreading the ball around, making heady throws, and showing toughness and smarts when the play breaks down. The head-spinning decisions when pressure arrives haven't completely dissipated, but the QB has grown leaps and bounds from where he was in that regard.
The Cleveland Browns gave up on him, things went disastrously in Carolina, and he joined his fourth team in three campaigns. Mayfield suddenly morphing into a difference-making QB wasn't discussed in the preseason script-writing powwow. Yet, here we are.
"It's always fun to be counted out," Mayfield said on Monday. "Obviously, I'm pretty comfortable in it, but our team has completely embraced that."
Bowles, the Bucs, and Mayfield have embraced the us-against-the-world mentality. The concoction of Bowles' unrelenting blitzes on defense and Mayfield's pivotal throws have the Bucs headed to the Divisional Round to face the Detroit Lions on Sunday at 3 p.m. ET.
After Brady's exit, few expected Tampa to be in this spot so soon.
"There's something about whether it's you're an underdog or a road game, just having your backs against the wall and knowing it's just your team versus everybody else when you're counted out, and it's always fun to be in that role," Mayfield said.
Tampa entered the postseason winning five of its final six games to swipe the NFC South, but the Bucs weren't playing their best ball. In Week 17, they sleepwalked to a home loss versus New Orleans, and in Week 18 against a two-win Panthers club, Mayfield and the offense put up three field goals in a 9-0 win.
The QB was banged up, spending the week working with a personal trainer to stretch his rib cage to promote healing following a late-season injury.
"I don't know the science," Mayfield said of the treatment with a laugh. "I just let him do the work. I'm a glutton for punishment. It's not fun, but it's worth it."
Mayfield is playing the best football of his career heading to the Divisional Round, joining three other QBs all with underdog stories of their own.
The Bucs have embraced their dark horse mentality. Ignored before the season; doubted after a midseason collapse saw them at 4-7; questioned entering the wild-card round. Bowles' club answered the bell each time. Now, a trip to Motown awaits with another chance to silence the doubters.
"They were ready to play, you know," Bowles said of his club. "We're not going to go in there trying to play for a tie. We were going for the win. We know we're underdogs. We'll be underdogs next week, too. We understand that. We embrace it. We like it. Them guys come up play after play. We'll enjoy tonight, and we'll get going tomorrow on Detroit."
