Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield suffered a rib injury during his team’s deflating loss to the New Orleans Saints this past weekend, but it didn’t seem like anything that would keep him out of action for the Buccaneers’ season finale.
Well, now, Mayfield’s status for Tampa Bay’s pivotal Week 18 matchup with the Carolina Panthers does not seem so certain.
On Wednesday, head coach Todd Bowles said that Mayfield would not have participated in practice had the Bucs held a full practice session (they instead held a walkthrough), via Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk.
Earlier in the week, Bowles said that Mayfield would be fine to play this Sunday, but it seems that Mayfield’s issue may be more bothersome than originally anticipated.
The 28-year-old sustained the injury after taking a hard hit from Saints safety Tyrann Mathieu during a two-point conversion attempt in the fourth quarter. Mayfield said after the game that X-rays were negative and that he was just feeling sore.
Mayfield went 22-for-33 with 309 yards, a couple of touchdowns and a pair of interceptions in the 23-13 loss that prevented the Buccaneers from clinching the NFC South division title.
The good news for Tampa Bay is that it will get a mulligan, as all it needs to do is beat the Panthers this weekend and it will win the division. Of course, that will be more of an arduous task if Mayfield is compromised or can’t take the field altogether.
Mayfield is having a terrific season, having thrown for 3,907 yards, 28 touchdowns and 10 picks while completing 64.4 percent of his passes and posting a passer rating of 95.9.
This comes after a 2022 campaign in which Mayfield’s career appeared to be on life support, as he split the season between the Panthers and Los Angeles Rams and totaled 10 touchdowns and eight interceptions.
Mayfield has certainly revitalized his career in 2023, setting himself up for a potentially big payday this coming offseason when he hits free agency.
Right now, though, Baker Mayfield’s sole focus is on getting healthy for Week 18 so he can guide the Bucs into the playoffs.
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