Raheem Morris: Dixie Chicks Couldn’t Get Baker Mayfield On The Ground
September 8th, 2025
Bucs QB Baker Mayfield scrambled for critical yards on third downs Sunday.
Finding a way to win. That’s what good quarterbacks do and Raheem Morris found out the hard way (though his quarterback damn near pulled off what Baker Mayfield did: Find a way to win.)
It wasn’t the greatest of days for the Bucs’ pass protection. A decent chunk of that reason was two guys were playing out of position and a third was pulled off the unemployment line in July.
The Bucs, almost irresponsibly, decided to shake up their offensive line by benching Charlie Heck, who was pegged to play in place of rehabbing Tristan Wirfs back in minicamp.
The Bucs flipped center Graham Barton to left tackle and left guard Ben Bredeson to center. Then filled the hole at left guard with not-that Michael Jordan. Got it?
The Bucs brazenly hatched this plan after the worthless preseason. Months of preparation was flushed down the toilet. At least for one game, it worked. Barely.
But this did leave the Bucs offense vulnerable. Bucky Irving never got into a rhythm. And Mayfield didn’t often have a clean pocket.
Still, Mayfield had some critical runs to extend drives and keep the ball out of Michael Penix’s hands. And this frustrated Dixie Chicks coach Raheem Morris.
“Started off well,” Morris said of Atlanta’s pass rush. “We just couldn’t get [Mayfield] on the ground.
“He scrambled for big third downs. He scrambled for a bunch of plays there that looked like they were rushing yards. Baker is tough to get on the ground.”
And that’s what Mayfield does. Just when you think he had him bottled up and shut down the passing game, he takes off and finds a way to get a first down.
Mayfield led the Bucs with 39 yards rushing.
Finding a way to win is what good quarterbacks do for a team. And Mayfield found a way to win when the Bucs needed him the most in the fourth quarter.