What Emily Wilkinson thought was a Casanova in cleats turned out to be a family man. Six years into marriage and one child later, she’s more than just Baker Mayfield’s wife. She’s a steady, hands-on mom and a strong partner. It hasn’t been easy. They had faced career downs and horrific death threats together. But through it all, the family has not let their faith waver. This Mother’s Day felt different. It was quiet, emotional, and real. 

Emily Mayfield, wife of Browns‘ former QB Baker Mayfield, had an interesting take on Mother’s Day. Staying true to her faith, she opened her post with a simple, powerful line: “Thank you, Jesus.” The photo she shared was straight out of a Hallmark movie—baby Kova Jade Mayfield in her arms, Baker by her side, and their loyal dog sitting at their feet. It was a snapshot of a life rooted in love, faith, and family.

The caption read like a love letter to her role as a mom. “My most prized role in the universe—‘Mom’,” she wrote. Then came the heartfelt thank-yous: “Thank you, Jesus, for trusting me to raise this baby girl. Thank you, Fergus, for being my most perfect first baby & allowing me to dip my toes into motherhood. Thank you, Koko, for making me a mama & taking it so easy on me. And thank you, Baker, for being my partner in this wild ride. There’s no one better. I’m the luckiest girl alive & I am beyond thankful.” 

Emily’s entire feed carries the same tone. She comes across as a family-first woman, a loving wife, and a devoted mother. But it’s not just their picture-perfect posts that fans connect with. Recently, the couple shared updates about a charity event held by the Baker and Emily Mayfield Foundation. The post invited fans to donate, calling them to support their favorite athlete and charity duo. All proceeds went to helping the local community in Tampa Bay—a move that only deepened their appeal.

The Mayfields have had to grow into this chapter. They had faced career dips and outside noise, yet they stayed grounded in their faith. But it wasn’t always this fairy tale.

“Weren’t doing well at all”: Baker Mayfield gets honest

Their love story didn’t begin on the field. It started quietly, with Baker Mayfield—then just a rising NFL star—pursuing Emily Wilkinson. Even though she was hesitant, eventually, she gave him a chance, and in 2019, they tied the knot. From the outside, it looked like a fairy tale. But behind the scenes, reality was far more complex.

In a deeply personal X post, Baker peeled back the curtain on the toll his career took. “God taught me a lesson,” he wrote. “There’s much more going on than the game of football, and for me to see that, I had to hit rock bottom, and that was it. It wasn’t just football. It was in our marriage.” The timing made sense. In 2021, just two years into their marriage, Baker was struggling. In a game against the Vikings, he completed just 15 of 33 passes for 155 yards.

That same season, he battled a shoulder injury in September and October, then a knee strain in November. That became his last year with the Browns. 

The stress wasn’t just professional. At home, things were hard. “We weren’t doing well at all,” Baker shared. “At this time, we were trying to have kids. Wasn’t going well. And so that was when we dove into PAO. But I remember a couple [of] years ago, we talked about… There’s that 99 percent of you… that you could put on the facade. As a guy you put on the mask. But behind closed doors, who are you really? What are you hiding? Are you being vulnerable? And until my career got stripped down, I was hiding a lot.” That honesty marked a turning point.

Emily stayed steady. She kept cheering him on, even when things got rough. By 2023, Baker found new life with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He threw a career-high 28 touchdown passes, led the team to an NFC South title, and improved his completion rate to 87%. He also helped the Bucs hit a franchise record in third-down conversions. Off the field, more good news followed. In December 2023, the Mayfields announced they were expecting their first child.

Then came a major vote of confidence. In 2024, Tampa Bay signed Baker to a three-year extension worth up to $110 million, converting much of it to bonuses to manage cap space. And the momentum kept building. For the Mayfields, the journey has been anything but picture-perfect. But faith, honesty, and resilience have turned it into something real—and that’s the kind of story fans believe in.