Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield said he feels 'disrespected' by the team's ownership after failing to agree on a contract extension. This was reported by Qazaqyia.kz citing Associated Press.
The two-time Pro Bowl quarterback plans to play out the final season of his three-year, $100 million deal. "I've been pretty up front and honest about my feelings about Tampa, it being home for our family, raising kids here. We love it here. I wanted a deal done and set the deadline and told them it was going to be all ball after that, and I did mean that. I don't know if they thought I was gonna take some of the offers that they gave," Mayfield said Thursday.
"I'm at the point in my career, understanding what I've brought to this franchise. One, I'm very thankful for the chance they gave me — do not get me wrong on that. But I also know, I really know what I've brought to this franchise, leadership-wise and even play-wise. It's been some of the best years of my career, and I think it's only going to trend upwards," he added.
Mayfield, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2018 NFL draft by Cleveland, revived his career in Tampa Bay after replacing Tom Brady in 2023. He made the Pro Bowl in each of his first two seasons while leading the Bucs to consecutive NFC South titles. He was an MVP candidate through the first half of last season when the team started 6-2 but struggled with injuries and tailed off.
"It's disappointing in that regard, to feel disrespected a little bit. That's really the disappointing part to feel undervalued after thinking you've earned it. This is not a 'poor me' thing. There's a lot of other people who have it way worse off. But I can sit here and look at other quarterbacks and peers and evaluate myself based on that and put myself in certain categories that I deserved to be compensated for that," Mayfield said.