In the hopes of locking up their franchise quarterback Baker Mayfield, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers reportedly offered him a two-year deal north of a hundred million dollars. But that deal left Mayfield feeling disrespected and undervalued, resulting in a contract standoff that has ignited speculation across the league. The ‘start-of-training-camp’ deadline Mayfield set for his team has passed, but the Buccaneers might not let him go anywhere else after the 2026 season.

When Adam Schefter appeared on the latest edition of the Pat McAfee Show, the NFL insider was asked about the current dynamic between Tampa Bay and Mayfield. Schefter noted the relationship is strained, but the Bucs still have two moves they can make on Mayfield.

“There are places you could already think of next year, where Baker would fit in great, but there are a number of places out there,” Schefter said on the show. “The issue is I don’t think he’s going to hit the market. And that doesn’t mean that Tampa and Baker can’t get a deal worked out or they won’t get a deal worked out, but Tampa’s got the franchise tag next year to the tune of roughly $47 million, which, by the way, is less than the two-year extension they offered him, which was over $50 million a year.

“So, the franchise tag, it’s roughly $47M. They have a franchise tag the next year if they wanted that at roughly $57M. So you’re looking at roughly $105 million in franchise tags the next two years, if that’s the route they went and they couldn’t get anything done and they want to keep Baker. It’s hard to imagine that it would ever get to that point that there’ll be two years of this. But the point is that when you have that tag, I think it gives you a little bit of leverage. And it’s not like Baker could just walk out the door.

“To me, I know he put that ‘open of training camp deadline’ on talks, but I don’t know why you can’t revisit that and say, ‘Look, we’re going to talk about this. And if we can make progress by Labor Day, great. And if not, then you don’t.’ But the two sides obviously were on different pages. I don’t know that they were all that far apart to begin with, but Baker shelved the talks and said he felt disrespected.”

This is the last year Mayfield has on the 3-year, $100 million deal he signed with the Bucs in 2024. This season, Mayfield carries a $39.975 million cap hit for his squad. Per Spotrac, his current market valuation lands at a 4-year, $214.4 million deal, giving him an average of $53.6 million. The Bucs have already offered him more than $50 million a year, per Schefter, but Mayfield either wants a bigger number or a longer commitment than just two years.

Running parallel with the Baker Mayfield standoff are the Vita Vea negotiations that have also spiraled in Tampa Bay. On the Pat McAfee Show, Schefter also noted that the team could be inclined to trade their veteran nose tackle if the two sides can’t agree on an extension. Could something similar happen to Mayfield?

Quarterback-needy teams like the Pittsburgh Steelers have already been floated as potential landing spots in 2027. Pat McAfee, meanwhile, wants Mayfield to join the Indianapolis Colts if Tampa Bay and Baker can’t get on the same page. Interestingly enough, Colin Cowherd has theorized that this standoff might just be a ploy on the Bucs’ part to get on Baker’s nerves, saying that “Baker plays better when he’s angry.” If that is indeed the case, that $47 million franchise tag is all the leverage Tampa Bay needs right now.