QB · TB · 31 yrs · exp 8 · Oklahoma
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Latest: Sep 7, 2026 · 4,533
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The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have selected their team captains for the 2026 season, with six veterans earning the honor through a vote by their teammates. Quarterback Baker Mayfield, tackle Tristan Wirfs, wide receiver Chris Godwin, nose tackle Vita Vea, linebacker Alex Anzalone and safety Antoine Winfield Jr. will wear the captain’s “C” this season. Mayfield, […]
Baker Mayfield has several goals for the Buccaneers this season
The Raiders naming Kirk Cousins their starting quarterback to open the 2026 season was hardly a surprise. While Las Vegas had been projected to draft Fernando Mendoza at No. 1 overall for months, the team’s brass had said publicly that its preference was for a rookie quarterback to sit and learn behind a veteran. But now that it’s official, Mendoza has become a member of a rare group of quarterbacks from recent years. Mendoza is the first quarterback since Baker Mayfield in 2018 not to start Week 1 after being selected at No. 1 overall. Mayfield’s situation was not particularly unusual at the time, as Jared Goff had been through the same thing in 2016. But since then, Kyler Murray (2019), Joe Burrow (2020), Trevor Lawrence (2021), Bryce Young (2023), Caleb Williams (2024), and Cam Ward (2025) have all been their respective club’s Week 1 starter after being selected at No. 1 overall. Since Matthew Stafford was selected at No. 1 overall in 2009, only Goff, Mayfield, and Mendoza have started the season as QB2. Sam Bradford (2010), Cam Newton (2011), Andrew Luck (2012), and Jameis Winston (2015) all started the season opener. Mayfield made it into a game by Week 3, taking over for an injured Tyrod Taylor to lead the Browns to their first victory since 2016 with a 21-17 victory over the Jets. He took over as Cleveland’s starter the following week. It took longer for Goff to ascend to QB1 for the Rams in 2016, as he began his tenure as Los Angeles’ starter in Week 11 with a 14-10 loss to Miami. Mendoza’s development will remain a priority for the Raiders, even as he won’t receive starters’ reps in the regular season. “ Early work, late work. More meetings ,” Kubiak said on Wednesday. “Plenty of time on the field between drills with [QBs] coach [Mike] Sullivan and [offensive coordinator] coach [Andrew] Janocko. Every player that is not starting the first game, that is helping us on the look team, we’re just trying to find every edge we can find to continue to get him better and his teammates better.” Aside from those selected at No. 1 overall, there are plenty of QBs who haven’t started early and ended up being successful. “I think there are so many examples both ways,” Kubiak said. “I think the most important thing with the quarterback room or any other position is to build competition within the room. That makes players so much better faster than coaching, when they have a guy in front of them that they can look up to and see how something’s done — that’s going to accelerate their growth.” We’ll see when Mendoza becomes Las Vegas’ starter. If Cousins plays well and the Raiders are winning, that might not be until 2027. But history suggests Mendoza will be on the field sooner or later as a rookie
Fernando Mendoza is the first No. 1 quarterback since Baker Mayfield who won't start Week 1
Klint Kubiak names Kirk Cousins starter over No. 1 pick Fernando Mendoza
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have set their initial 53-man roster, with rookie Jalon Daniels taking the backup quarterback job behind Baker Mayfield
The Buccaneers have set their initial 53-man roster, with Jalon Daniels emerging as the backup quarterback behind Baker Mayfield
Daniels started 45 games in college for Kansas, but the rookie has no regular-season experience
Buccaneers to release Jake Browning; Jalon Daniels set to be No. 2 QB
Daniels is moving forward as Tampa Bay's backup quarterback behind Baker Mayfield after impressing throughout training camp, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports. Visit RotoWire.com for more analysis on this update
Jake Browning was released by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Following an impressive training camp and appearances in all three of the team's preseason games, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers will name undrafted rookie Jalon Daniels as the backup quarterback behind Baker Mayfield, according to NFL Insider Ian Rapoport. A true dual threat across his extended time at Kansas, Daniels ended his six-year collegiate career with 9,273 passing yards, 1,916 rushing yards, and 90 combined touchdowns. He began training camp as the fourth quarterback behind veteran Jake Browning and 2025 practice squader Connor Bazelak, but he has made plays throughout the summer and will begin his rookie season in the number two role
Baker Mayfield said he felt disrespected and undervalued by the contract offers that came from the Buccaneers this offseason, so the quarterback is now set to play out the final year of his current deal. Mayfield also said that he wasn’t interested in continuing to negotiate when he got to training camp this summer, which sets up a lot of possible ways for things to go between now and the start of the 2027 season. During an interview on WFLA during Friday night’s preseason game, General Manager Jason Licht said he thinks that the end result of whatever happens in the coming months will be Mayfield in a Bucs uniform. “I’m very optimistic about it,” Licht said, via Jenna Laine of ESPN.com. “He wants to play. He wants to prove to us that he is the franchise quarterback that we said that he was. So, we’ll just have to see how it plays out. I’ll never close the door on anything in the short term, but right now, he’s focused on football.” The Bucs have the franchise tag at their disposal, so there’s little chance of Mayfield simply walking away off of a stellar season. Anything short of that opens up more possibilities that would make it a bit harder to share certainty about what the future will bring in Tampa
Jalon Daniels will start tonight's preseason finale against Jacksonville and will play the first half and possibly into the third quarter
Jalon Daniels to start in preseason finale, making push for No. 2 job behind Baker Mayfield
Baker Mayfield and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers remain in contract negotiations, with Mayfield reportedly seeking a longer commitment than the two-year extension offered. Key sticking points include the total value and guarantees in the proposed deal, as well as the length of the contract. Mayfield is currently in the final year of his contract and is seeking a deal that aligns with the current market for veteran quarterbacks
Vita Vea signs one‑year extension, keeping him on the Bucs roster for 2027
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