The Tampa Bay Buccaneers saw their Cinderella run come to an end with their loss to the Detroit Lions in the Divisional Round of the playoffs on Sunday, but Baker Mayfield is proud of what his team was able to accomplish this season.

“It was about the self-belief,” Mayfield said, via DJ Siddiqi of Heavy.com. “And that’s what this team should be proud of. We weren’t supposed to be here by anyone’s opinion. But we believed in each other and got here. Obviously, when you don’t win it all, it’s always a disappointing season. But this group can be proud of a lot we did this year.”

Mayfield went 26-for-41 with 349 yards, three touchdowns and a couple of interceptions in the defeat.

It was certainly a surprising season for both Mayfield and the Buccaneers, as Mayfield entered 2023 with a whole lot to prove and Tampa Bay was not on anyone’s radar.

On the year, Mayfield threw for 4,044 yards, 28 touchdowns and 10 picks while completing 64.3 percent of his passes and posting a passer rating of 94.6. He also went 22-for-36 with 337 yards and three touchdowns in the Bucs’ Wild Card Round win over the Philadelphia Eagles.

It was one heck of a resurgent campaign for Mayfield, whose NFL career seemed to be on life support last season when he split the year between the Carolina Panthers and Los Angeles Rams. During that time, he totaled 10 touchdowns and eight interceptions.

The 28-year-old then proceeded to sign a one-year deal with the Buccaneers last offseason.

No one knew what to expect from Mayfield, who showed flashes of brilliance during his first four NFL seasons with the Cleveland Browns but struggled with consistency.

He went on to enjoy what was probably the best year of his career, and now, Baker Mayfield will get to explore the free-agent market this offseason.

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