Whatever team ends up signing Baker Mayfield in free agency, the average annual salary of his new deal is going to dwarf the $4 million he played for with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2023.
Per Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio, there is a sense that Mayfield's contract will be in the range of $30-35 million per season.
Spotrac's Michael Ginnitti has projected Mayfield will sign a four-year, $120 million contract with $53 million guaranteed at signing and $85 million in practical guarantees.
Coming off a 2022 season that saw him get traded from the Cleveland Browns to the Carolina Panthers right before training camp, followed by requesting his release late in the season and getting claimed by the Los Angeles Rams, Mayfield basically took a one-year prove-it deal last offseason.
The shrewd bit of business worked out great for Mayfield. He had the best season of his career and helped the Bucs win the NFC South for the third consecutive year. They defeated the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC Wild Card Game before losing to the Detroit Lions in the divisional round.
Both Mayfield and the Buccaneers have expressed a mutual desire to extend their partnership.
"Obviously, we want to get the band back together," Mayfield told NFL Network on Feb. 8.
General manager Jason Licht was asked about Mayfield at the NFL scouting combine last week:
"Baker meant a lot to this team, this fanbase and this town and I think we meant a lot to him. I think it was a perfect marriage. I've said it before, but he sought us out. He gambled on us, saw it as a good situation and saw it better than a lot of national outlets that saw us winning two games. So, he thought it would be good for him and it certainly was. I know he wants to be Buc and we want him to be a Buc, so that is usually a good starting point."
The Bucs have already answered two of their three big free-agent questions. They agreed to a two-year, $52 million deal with Mike Evans on Monday that keeps him with the organization before the market even opened on March 13.
Getting Evans' contract done allowed the Buccaneers to use their franchise tag on All-Pro safety Antoine Winfield Jr. The two sides can continue to work on a long-term deal, but they at least have him for the 2024 season.
Mayfield is the last major hanging thread for the Bucs. The Athletic's Dianna Russini noted the Minnesota Vikings and Atlanta Falcons are keeping an eye on his situation as they look to figure out their quarterback situations.
The 28-year-old threw for 4,044 yards and 28 touchdowns with a 64.3 completion percentage in 17 starts last season.
