Despite Bucs Missing Three (Four?) Offensive Starters, Todd Bowles Isn’t Worried About Baker Mayfield
August 31st, 2025
“I trust you, ‘Bake.'”
We know the Bucs offense will be down three starters on offense come next Sunday when the Bucs travel to Atlanta to face the Dixie Chicks to open the season.
The Bucs may be down four starters. Tight end Cade Otton has a mysterious leg injury on top of a bad hamstring that cost him a couple of weeks of practice in training camp.
Joe is morbidly curious to see the first injury report of the season on Wednesday to see what is wrong with Otton.
Four starters (maybe) is damn near a third of the starters. We know that Tristan Wirfs, Chris Godwin and Jalen McMillan are out. Otton, if he misses the game, would be the fourth.
Last week Bucs coach Todd Bowles was asked about Mayfield and his preparation, missing so many starters. Bowles all but said Mayfield may be the last guy he loses sleep over.
“Baker is a pro – he’s going to do whatever he has to do to win and whoever’s in there, we’ll make the adjustments offensively and we’ve got to play,” Bowles said. “I mean, [injuries are] part of the game.
“[Injuries are] going to happen. We don’t stress too much about who’s playing. If you make the team, it’s for a reason and if there are wide outs that hadn’t played and people go down, we expect them to step up and play.”
Even though the Bucs lost all three of their games last year when they missed both Mike Evans and Godwin, those losses can’t be hung on Mayfield. He brought the Bucs back at Kansas City and at home against San Francisco.
Mayfield wasn’t the guy who decided not to go for two late and instead dare Patrick Mahomes to win the game on his home turf in overtime.
It wasn’t Mayfield whose defense let the 49ers race downfield in the final seconds and kick a game-winning field goal as time ran out.
Bowles is right. If Mayfield is on the field, he will scratch and claw his way to put the Bucs in position to win the game.