Baker Mayfield’s nightmare start against the Los Angeles Rams went from bad to worse.
Traveling to Southern California to take on the Rams, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers had been mired in a two-game losing streak, with Mayfield looking like a shell of himself in recent weeks. Facing off against a tough Los Angeles defense, Mayfield had his work cut out for him, especially as he tried to lead the Buccaneers back to a win.
However, he would have no respite Sunday night, with the Rams defense giving him no room to breathe, leading to a less-than-stellar outing through three quarters. The 30-year-old’s performance comes after his wife admitted their marriage was “failing” before a baby announcement.
Throughout the first half, Mayfield often found himself swarmed, leading to incomplete passes and sacks. Being brought down so many times eventually took its toll on Mayfield, with the star’s left shoulder being injured in the second quarter.
Despite this, he continued to soldier on, though he ended the first half throwing an interception, much to the delight of the Rams fans. After the break, Mayfield quickly was replaced by Teddy Bridgewater, ending his night as Tampa Bay found itself down 31-7.
In his time on the field, Mayfield completed nine of his 19 pass attempts for 41 yards. The star threw one touchdown and two interceptions before leaving the game in the third quarter.
What made the situation tougher for the Buccaneers was the fact that Mayfield was spotted on the sideline with his left arm in a sling. It was clear that Mayfield’s decision to throw a long pass, which ultimately resulted in the aforementioned interception, at the end of the second quarter did not help the situation, as noted by fans.
“Can’t put my finger on it but I don’t think they needed a 70-yard heave down 31-7,” a fan wrote in response to seeing a hurt Mayfield on the sideline. Another fan added, “I don’t know who called that play. The right one would have been to kneel and go into halftime.”
Overall, Tampa Bay finds itself in a tough spot, especially considering how the last three weeks have gone for the Buccaneers. Being mired in a losing streak is tough for any team but with their star quarterback injured for an undetermined amount of time is difficult to swallow.
Before the game, Rams head coach Sean McVay explained how Mayfield brings the same kind of stability to the team that Matthew Stafford does. “Obviously, I think when you look at it, you know, with the two quarterbacks, we feel so fortunate to have Matthew,” McVay stated.
“Obviously, I know Tampa feels that way about Baker but you got two guys that elevate the people that they’re around, instill a belief, which I think is some of the most powerful things that you can offer as a quarterback with the way that you lead and the way that you compete that’s authentic to you and I think Baker’s always done that throughout his career.
“Matthew’s always done that but what he did was he was himself and I think when you look back on it, I don’t know that many people are surprised but it’s an incredible, it’s an impressive feat that’s a real testament to his, you know, competitiveness but also his mental capacity to be able to handle and absorb so much information in a short amount of time.”
