Tampa Bay Buccaneers rookie wide receiver Emeka Egbuka has only played three games with quarterback Baker Mayfield, but nothing surprises the former Ohio State star thus far.
Egbuka caught a 28-yard pass from Mayfield on the game-winning drive as Egbuka worked the sideline. It was one of two big pass plays that set up kicker Chase McLaughlin’s walk-off field goal against the Jets in a 29-27 victory.
“Nothing I didn’t already know,” Egbuka told reporters afterward. “We see it every single day in practice. He’s a natural-born leader — someone who is willing to die on the field before giving up or shutting down.”
“I think it’s pretty special to have someone like that at the helm of your offense and at the helm of your team, so we’re in good hands,” Egbuka added.
Down 27-26 with 1:49 left, Mayfield took the Buccaneers on a seven-play, 48-yard drive, capped by McLaughlin’s 36-yard field goal. Mayfield’s pass to Egbuka and the quarterback’s 28-yard completion to wide receiver Sterling Shepard put the Buccaneers back in the driver’s seat.
“Yeah, all I can say about that is when I came off the field I turned straight to Riley [Dixon] and Evan [Deckers] and said, ‘Hey, we’re going to get another chance at this,’” McLaughlin told reporters afterward. “I knew Baker and the boys were going to drive down and give us another chance so hats off to them for getting us in range, and for us, to be able to execute.”
Tampa Bay fell behind 27-26 on a blocked kick that Will McDonald returned 50 yards for a touchdown. The Buccaneers otherwise led since the 11:15 mark of the second quarter.
That’s when Mayfield found star wide receiver Mike Evans on a 5-yard touchdown pass. Unfortunately, the Buccaneers lost Evans to a hamstring injury, but that didn’t stop Mayfield.
Baker Mayfield Has 3 Game-Winning Drives This Season
For a third straight game, Mayfield led a game-winning drive, and he finished with 19-29 passing for 233 yards and a touchdown plus 44 yards rushing. Mayfield relied on Egbuka, amid the rookie’s team-high of six receptions for 85 yards, and Shepard had four receptions for 80 yards.
Another comeback didn’t surprise Bowles, who had coached Mayfield for a little over two seasons with the Buccaneers. Bowles helped bring in Mayfield in 2023 after Tom Brady retired, and Mayfield now has seven fourth-quarter comebacks or game-winning drives with the team.
“One thousand percent,” Bowles told reporters afterward regarding Mayfield. “It’s been like that since he got here.”
Tampa Bay signed Mayfield on a one-year, $4 million deal in 2023 to potentially replace Brady. Mayfield beat out former Buccaneers quarterback Kyle Trask for the starting job, and Mayfield earned a three-year, $100 million deal in the process as he led the team to the playoffs.
Baker Mayfield Building Expectations in Tampa
Now, Mayfield is beginning another season with more expectations and the franchise’s best start in 20 years. Tampa Bay never started 3-0 during the Brady era, and the Buccaneers last did it in 2005 when the team went 11-5 but fell short in the playoffs.
“It’s hard to win in this league, period,” Bowles said. “Us shooting ourselves doesn’t help it much, but the resiliency they had to come back and win those games [is big].”
“We’re stacking them early this year. We’ve been 2-0 the past three or four years, but we haven’t won the third game, so that’s a plus, winning the third game,” he added.
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