Baker Mayfield’s Big Outing In Week 1
““Bake, you run the show. It’s your team....You’ve got athletes everywhere. Give ‘em the ball. Let ‘em go.””
Those are words Todd Bowles delivered to Baker Mayfield on July 23rd of this year, taking away any semblance of trust issues or confusion about responsibilities on the offense. Mayfield made good on Bowles' affirmation in the Week 1 matchup against the Washington Commanders.
Baker Mayfield completed 24 of his 30 passing attempts in the game. He finished that game with 289 passing yards. It's the fourth-most he's thrown for in a Buccaneers uniform. He would've had, at least, another 38 yards had it not been for a big drop by Jalen McMillan early in the 1st Quarter. The rookie made up for it later on a TD connection.
Mayfield displayed nearly all of his good QB traits in the win. He showed good ball placement throughout the game. His first touchdown to Mike Evans was nothing short of amazing. The ball was out in front of Evans and perfectly placed behind the defender, running step-for-step with him. That's something we didn't see enough of last season. Far too often, Mayfield would've made that a 50/50 jump ball instead of leading the receiver.
"St-Juste is a physical corner. Tall. Maybe a couple inches shorter than me. He plays phsyical. He played the ball good. But Baker threw a better ball. And I had strong hands at the end"--Mike Evans
Mayfield on the move
While the offensive line held its ground, it did allow pressure to get in Mayfield's way. And he handled it as well as one could ask for. He evaded several QB pressures and turned three of them into scrambles for a total of 21 yards. Even though 21 yards is hardly seen as a threatening run attack, it's enough to get a defense's attention when it's on just three carries, especially coming from the QB position. In the preview leading into the game, addressing what it would take to stop a mobile QB like Jayden Daniels, it was noted it takes a lot of discipline from the front seven of the defense more than anything else. However, defenders in the secondary tend to peak into the backfield a bit longer and lose focus on the receiver in front of them. And that can lead to many opportunities when a play gets extended.
Mayfield took advantage of a few of those opportunities against the Commanders' defense. One that stood out was in the 2nd Quarter, on a 3rd and 6, Mayfield extended the play simply by stepping up in the pocket to avoid the pressure applied by LB Frankie Luvu(#4) and delivered a strike to Chris Godwin for the 1st Down. Because Baker had already left the pocket on previous drives, the defensive end, Dorance Armstrong(#92), who ended up dropping into coverage, was caught looking at Mayfield to see if he'd run again, which left space for Godwin to work.
The BUCS QB ended the day with a total of four touchdowns. He connected with each of his Big 3 at wide receiver in the endzone, including two to big 1-3, Mike Evans.
"He's been dialed in all offseason. Made plays with his legs..in the pocket. Great throws all night. He's that guy." --Mike Evans
As coach Todd Bowles instructed before the season began, Mayfield got the ball to his playmakers, and they made the most of the available plays. Well, mostly. Looking at you, Rookie! He got the ball to seven different receivers, and they averaged twelve yards per reception.
"Ball was distributed based on where the defense was dictating. Our guys just have to be ready, and they were."--Baker Mayfield
