BakerMayfield

News: 7 days agoMayfield completed 19 of 34 passes for 277 yards with two touchdowns and one interception while adding one rush for one yard in the Buccaneers' 29-28 loss to the Falcons on Thursday night. He also threw a two-point conversion pass.

Spin: Mayfield clawed his way to an impressive yardage total despite finding himself under constant pressure, taking five sacks and seven official hits overall. The veteran signal-caller did clearly benefit from the returns of Mike Evans and Jalen McMillan from injured reserve, as the duo accounted for 170 total receiving yards, with 132 of those coming from Evans. Mayfield's one interception was also particularly critical to the outcome, as it came with 8:28 remaining at the Falcons' 33-yard line and ultimately led to an Atlanta touchdown that narrowed what had been a 28-20 deficit. On the brighter side, Mayfield's yardage total was his best since Week 5, and he'll aim to keep the Buccaneers' playoff hopes afloat with a more efficient performance in a Week 16 road matchup against the Panthers on Sunday, Dec. 21.

ESPN Fantasy Projection: Mayfield may have enjoyed his career renaissance in 2023, but he had his fantasy breakout in 2024. After finishing 18th or worse in fantasy PPG during each of his first six NFL seasons, Mayfield leapt to fourth in 2024. He finished no lower than fifth in pass attempts, completions, yards and TDs, while also easily posting a career high in rush yards. Mayfield completed 71% of his passes (third best) despite missing Chris Godwin and Mike Evans for chunks of the season, and he may be in even better shape in 2025 with Evans back, Godwin hopefully healthy and youngsters Emeka Egbuka and Jalen McMillan also in the mix. Mayfield benefits from a Bucs offense that has scored a league-high 76.6% of its TDs through the air since Todd Bowles became head coach in 2022. With consecutive seasons of good play under his belt, the 30-year-old is well positioned for another solid QB1 fantasy campaign.