Baker Mayfield makes an eyebrow-raising comment about his contract negotiations on Dan Patrick Show
Perhaps it was a bit of levity. Or perhaps not. Baker Mayfield has been making the rounds in Las Vegas during Super Bowl LVIII week, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' 2023 quarterback and pending free agent stopped by to talk with Dan Patrick on Friday. The topic of the contract negotiations for Mayfield and Mike Evans […]
Perhaps it was a bit of levity. Or perhaps not.
Baker Mayfield has been making the rounds in Las Vegas during Super Bowl LVIII week, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' 2023 quarterback and pending free agent stopped by to talk with Dan Patrick on Friday.
The topic of the contract negotiations for Mayfield and Mike Evans – another upcoming Buccaneer free agent – came up, and the veteran quarterback made an interesting remark.
After discussing the luxury of having Evans and Chris Godwin on the roster, Patrick asked the multi-million-dollar question: will Evans be back next year?
"I hope so," Mayfield said. "If I'm back, hope so."
Patrick followed that up with asking if Mayfield would share any of his money with him, meaning take less with a new contract to free up money for Evans to sign an extension with the Bucs. His response was surprisingly honest.
"I think there would be some sacrifice along the way," Mayfield responded. "There's mutual benefit for us to come back together."
While it sometimes happens, it's more the exception than the rule to hear a player admit a potential willingness to take less money to stay and help another teammate stay.
The Buccaneers took a sizable step in bringing Mayfield back last week with the signing of Liam Coen as the team's new offensive coordinator. Coen and Mayfield were together in Los Angeles in 2022.
Now, the Bucs will have to deliver where it really counts: in the financial department. And it will need to be soon. Mayfield's and Evans' contracts will void on February 19 before the league year ends. However, if the Buccaneers can manage to re-sign both by that time, then they would save significantly towards the 2024 cap, particularly in Evans' case. As such, there is urgency to get a deal done on the Buccaneers' end.
We'll see soon if that happens. Fortunately for the Bucs, it sounds like they have flexibility from one of their top targets to potentially help work out deals for both.
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