It’s not hard to comprehend what Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield was thinking last season as he played through injuries. He’s tough. If there’s any possible way he can keep playing, he will
What’s harder to comprehend is why the Buccaneers let an obviously injured Mayfield continue to play and why the entire world is just finding out now, with Mayfield disclosing a variety of injuries suffered in 2025 while appearing on the Netflix documentary series Quarterback
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To anyone watching Mayfield play for most of the season, it was obvious he was hurt. We just now know how bad
“Bucs QB Baker Mayfield, on the Netflix series Quarterback, reveals he played with a sprained MCL and PCL since Week 2,” Tampa Bay Times NFL reporter Rick Stroud wrote on his official X account on Monday. “He also had a bad biceps contusion that was bruised and affected his velocity. Then the left shoulder injury vs. Rams. Bonus for toughness but it affected his play.”
The entire 3rd season of Quarterback premieres on July 14 and follows 4 NFL quarterbacks through the 2025 NFL season: Mayfield, Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels, Cleveland Browns/Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Flacco, and Tennessee Titans rookie quarterback Cam Ward.
All 4 quarterbacks led teams that finished with losing records
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“Baker Mayfield’s injury list from 2025 is significant,” Fox Sports NFL reporter Greg Auman wrote on his official X account on Monday. “Eight different injuries listed, putting him on injury reports for 10 of 18 weeks. And yet he didn’t miss a game, only two DNP practices, nine limited. Pushed through a lot last season, just in what was listed. Week 3: foot/toe, Week 4: right biceps, Week 5: knee/right biceps, Week 8: knee/oblique, Week 10: knee/oblique, Week 12: illness, Week 13: left shoulder, Week 14: left shoulder, Week 15: left shoulder, Week 18: right shoulder/knee.”
Baker Mayfield Accused of ‘Hiding Injury’ After Loss
The Buccaneers got off to a hot start in 2025 with a 5-1 record but finished the season 8-9 and missed the playoffs for the 1st time since 2019
One big part of those struggles was Mayfield’s inconsistent play, who started all 17 games but appeared to be injured for most of the season. After a 2nd consecutive loss in Week 13 — a 44-32 road loss to the Buffalo Bills —The Ringer’s Bill Simmons questioned if there might be something physically wrong with Mayfield, a 2-time Pro Bowler
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“I would believe, if you gave me all the QBS and said one of these guys is hiding an injury, Mayfield would be my pick,” Simmons said on “The Bill Simmons Podcast” on November 16. “It’s like, ‘Oh, he has a torn labrum’ or like some sort of really bad injury we don’t know about. Because it also seems like he doesn’t want to run with the same zest. So it’s also like maybe he has like a hairline fracture of his left collarbone or something like that.”
Numbers Back Up Mayfield Might Have Problem
Simmons’ speculation proved to be right as Mayfield definitely seemed like a different player than the freewheeling player who thrust himself into the NFL MVP conversation over the first 6 weeks of the regular season
The numbers also backed up that something has changed. Before the loss to the Bills, Mayfield didn’t have a single rushing yard in the previous 3 games after essentially (for him) running wild over the first 6 weeks
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Against the Bills, Mayfield had 5 carries for 39 yards and his first rushing touchdown of the season — one he paid for dearly. Mayfield, who is still averaging 7.3 yards per carry, finished 16-of-28 passing for 173 yards, 1 touchdown and 1 interception in the loss to Buffalo
“In terms of the injury news, I would reserve judgment until watching the series,” Bucs Reporter Evan Closky wrote on his official X account on Monday. “It was the accumulation of injuries that was the problem. Just could never get a break. Individually, manageable.”
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