After Tom Brady‘s retirement earlier this year, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers will have a new starting quarterback for the 2023 NFL season.
All signs point to Baker Mayfield being the replacement, though he knows it will be impossible to “fill the shoes” of the legendary quarterback.
Mayfield, 28 years old, will fight with Kyle Trask for the position, but he is the favorite to take over the controls for Todd Bowles‘ team.
However, the former number one pick has already made it clear he won’t try to fill the void left by Brady.
“I will never be Tom Brady, there is a reason why he won so many Super Bowls: he is the best of all time, there is no doubt about it. I’m not going to try to be Tom Brady, I’m going to be me,” said Mayfield.
Tampa Bay will be Mayfield‘s fourth team since being drafted in 2018 (Cleveland Browns, Carolina Panthers and Los Angeles Rams), and he’s keen to cement himself once and for all in the NFL.
“An organization like this, which has been successful recently, it was important for me to be in a stable place that knew how to win. I wanted to go to a place where we could win right now and this is the right place,” said Mayfield.
Baker Mayfield: NFL statistics
In six seasons as a passer, Mayfield has totalled 16,288 yards, 102 touchdown passes and 64 interceptions in 72 games played.
In Friday’s 27-17 preseason loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers, Mayfield looked solid, throwing for just 63 yards, but with one touchdown pass and eight completions out of nine attempts.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers: first regular season game of 2023
The Buccaneers’ new era will begin Sept. 10 with a Week 1 regular-season visit to the Minnesota Vikings at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis.
