Things didn't go the way the Tampa Bay Buccaneers wanted them to on Sunday afternoon in Detroit.  Despite being tied at halftime and again in the fourth quarter, the Bucs couldn't quite keep up with the Lions' prolific offense, falling 31-23. 

However, the Bucs wouldn't have been in it if not for another strong performance from Baker Mayfield.  Mayfield completed 26 of 41 attempts for 349 yards and 3 touchdowns with 2 interceptions.  147 of those yards went to receiver Mike Evans, who had 8 catches with a touchdown.  

The loss served as the end to a thrilling and meteoric rise of the Buccaneers, who went from 4-7 to 9-8 and NFC South champions.  From a team that some pegged to be a three- or four-win team to dispatching the defending NFC champion Eagles in the wild card round of the playoffs. 

And now the (literal) million-dollar question finally has to be asked: what's next for the Buccaneers and Mayfield?  The answer should be easy: a multi-year contract that keeps him in Tampa Bay. 

Baker rolled the dice

There's no question Mayfield bet on himself and he hit the jackpot as a result.  By accepting an incentive-laden deal, he knew he had to perform in order to get a significant sum.  He also probably knew the options at getting a legit starting opportunity in the league were few and far between. 

As a result, he gave the Bucs the best bang for your buck performance from a quarterback this season, finishing with 4044 passing yards, 28 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions.  

Baker showed he could play in crunch time

Perhaps more importantly, he was a strength of the team in the playoffs, throwing for 337 yards with three touchdowns and 349 and three more in two playoff games.  His first interception against Detroit was off a drop by Evans, and the second was on a forced throw under pressure in the two-minute drill.

Now, Jason Licht knows what kind of performance he could end up getting from his quarterback in the playoffs should the Bucs end up committing serious money to him this offseason.  And there's little doubt that he should.  Picking in the 20s, it will be hard to draft one of the top QB prospects.  There are also no free agent options that have recently posted any kind of similar season to what Mayfield had. 

Can a deal get done?

On Mayfield's side, it's harder to find a much better situation than where he's at right now.  Dave Canales' play calling brought out the best in Mayfield this year.  Evans and Chris Godwin are as good of a one-two punch as he will find in the league.  Cade Otton has emerged as a solid pass catching tight end.  Rachaad White is also emerging as a dynamic all-purpose running back, excelling in the passing game. 

There's no doubt the Bucs have some major names to take care of in the offseason.  Evans and Antoine Winfield, Jr. are free agents. Lavonte David is still playing at a very high level.  Tristan Wirfs is due a long-term deal.  There are a lot of key deals to get done. 

The good news is the Bucs have the eighth-most projected cap space in the league for 2024 per OverTheCap.com at over $47 million.  Jason Licht and his staff are as good as there are in the league in creating cap space.  As such, there's hope the Bucs can retain Evans and David and also keep their young franchise cornerstones in town for years to come. 

And Mayfield should be a part of that future as well.  According to A to Z Sports' cap experts Josh Queipo and Kyle DeDiminicantanio, Mayfield should be in the market for a deal around 3 years, $82.5 million, which comes out to a $27.5 million annual value with around $32.5 million guaranteed.  Given the franchise tag figure is projected to be almost $36 million for 2024, that's a good little discount for the Bucs as opposed to what they'd have to pay to keep their starter in town for another year. 

The Bucs' window isn't closing.  If anything, the arrow is pointing squarely up, even after Sunday's loss.  Now, Licht and the Bucs' brass must find a way to keep it that way for the next few years by keeping Mayfield in Tampa Bay. 

Why did Bucs go for two against Lions?

Explaining the decision.