Baker Mayfield loves journeyman status reaching its end with Buccaneers

I always believed in the guy. Shortly before being the No. 1 overall pick by the Cleveland Browns in the 2018 NFL Draft, I had the opportunity to speak with Baker Mayfield over the phone. Even though I loved the fact that my alma mater beat his in overtime to end his illustrious college career in the Rose Bowl, I always knew that eventually, water would find its level and Mayfield would be a star in the NFL.

It took a few years, but what we saw last year in his first season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers was no fluke. I saw a guy who rallied around his teammates and in turn, his teammates rallied around him. It was like watching Oklahoma Baker Mayfield once again, one of my all-time favorite quarterbacks to cover in college football. Pushing 30, he seems to have grown into the star we all knew he could be.

Mayfield went on "The Mike Calta Show" last week, explaining how cool it is to have an NFL home again.

"You're having a lot more fun when you're not getting shipped off to different places like a piece of dirty laundry, I'll tell you that. So, when I got embraced in Tampa, it made a world of difference," said Mayfield, h/t NFL.com.

What we saw last year was Mayfield finally playing unencumbered football again. He admitted to it.

"I've always played ball to enjoy it. I mean, it is a game. Yes, it is my job, but I love it so much. I've always worn my emotions on my sleeve and, so, let people embrace that, and that's why I'm so excited for having more years to come in Tampa for people to just get to know me a little bit better, truly realize that's not just a show on the field. That's who I am when it comes down to the football aspect. I love it. I'd do anything for our team and our locker room guys know that."

After his first Pro Bowl season of his career, Mayfield knows he has an NFC South division to protect.

"I couldn't have been happier with the way it worked out. Obviously, getting some of those other guys back and continuing what we were able to build on last year, it just felt like home from top-down how they run it. … I'm so excited to be heading into another season with these guys, for the most part the same group, and just truly embrace that and build the chemistry even more."

Although my Atlanta Falcons are coming for his team, Mayfield is right in that Tampa Bay is still on top.

"Let's not get it twisted. The division still runs through us."

Here is the entire interview Mayfield had while appearing on "The Mike Calta Show" from last Thursday.

Let's unpack the journey, and honestly, the transformation, Mayfield has undergone across the NFL.

Baker Mayfield is glad he found his NFL home with Tampa Bay Buccaneers

When Mayfield arrived in Cleveland, the Browns didn't win games, like, any. No wins for the Brownies. He had two good seasons with them as a rookie in 2018 and again in 2020, with a sophomore slump sandwiched in between. An injury-plagued last year with the franchise in 2021, as well as a never-ending carousel of head coaches culminated in him being traded to the Carolina Panthers in 2022.

As it turned out, Carolina was even more dysfunctional than the Browns were at times during Mayfield's four-year tenure with the franchise. He was released and then quickly claimed off waivers by the Los Angeles Rams, who were rudderless after Matthew Stafford went down due to injury. It was there were he first got connected with Liam Coen, his new offensive coordinator in Tampa Bay.

Although Mayfield had tremendous success last year in Tampa Bay playing in Dave Canales' system, guess who is the new head coach in Charlotte? Losing Canales to a head-coaching gig was always a possibility, but the Buccaneers made it a priority to not lose Mayfield. He quickly signed an extension with the team this offseason to help right his latest chapter in the NFL: Tampa Bay's franchise player.

While a lot can change between now and end of the season, I still think Tampa Bay is a playoff-caliber team in the NFC South. I get a feeling the Falcons and Buccaneers will both be making them in some capacity, wild card, division winner, whatever. With a new daughter and a new contract, now is the time for Mayfield to continue to build his roots in the NFL city that has embraced him ... being him.

The NFL may stand for Not For Long, but Mayfield seems to have figured it out with the Buccaneers.