Tampa Bay Buccaneers‘ 2026 season was already sinking, and then it got worse. Baker Mayfield’s throwing thumb is dislocated, Jalen McMillan’s knee has given out again, and the 0-3 Buccaneers are scrambling to patch a quarterback room that entered the year with just two QBs on the 53-man roster.
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“Buccaneers placed wide receiver Jalen McMillan on IR, signed quarterback Brett Rypien to their practice squad,” Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2 wrote on X.
The most notable reason for the signing is Brett Rypien’s comfort level with the current playbook. The 30-year-old quarterback spent the 2023 season with the Los Angeles Rams, where the current Bucs offensive coordinator Zac Robinson once served as the QB coach.
Rypien has also been a journeyman, spending time with teams like the Broncos, Rams, Bengals, and Seahawks. Across 11 career games, he holds a 2-2 record as an NFL starter, throwing for 950 yards, 4 touchdowns, and 9 interceptions.
The QB’s addition to the team’s practice squad will create a buffer in the QB room, especially considering the current situation.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers offense suffered two devastating blows following their Week 3 loss to the Minnesota Vikings, with wide receiver Jalen McMillan and quarterback Baker Mayfield out with injuries.
McMillan suffered a PCL sprain in his left knee during the team’s third play when he collided with Minnesota safety Josh Metellus while attempting to catch a corner route and did not return.
This injury is a re-aggravation of a left knee injury that McMillan originally suffered during training camp, which also caused him to miss the Buccaneers’ 2026 season opener.
As things stand, placing McMillan on IR sidelines him for a minimum of four games.
Meanwhile, QB1 Baker Mayfield’s streak of 57 consecutive starts for the Buccaneers is coming to an end following an injury sustained in the fourth quarter of the Week 3 game.
Mayfield suffered a dislocated right thumb on his throwing hand. The injury occurred while he was scrambling to keep a play alive on 4th-and-13, hitting his throwing arm against Vikings linebacker Blake Cashman.
In the follow-up MRI and X-ray testing, there was some positive news for the Buccaneers fans. Mayfield avoided any bone fractures, ligament damage, or tendon damage and will not require surgery.
According to head coach Todd Bowles, Mayfield will miss at least three weeks.
“It’s consistent with everything we thought it was, a dislocation,” Bowles said. “Right now we’re probably talking a minimum of three weeks.”
Since Baker Mayfield avoided structural damage, the team is keeping him on the active roster rather than placing him on IR, hoping he can return as soon as possible.
Meanwhile, in his absence, rookie Jalon Daniels is expected to make his first career NFL start in Week 4 against the Green Bay Packers. On top of that, the Bucs are expected to promote practice-squad member Easton Stick to the active 53-man roster as Daniels’ direct backup, leaving new signing Brett Rypien as the essential third healthy quarterback on the team.