Background and career
Baker Reagan Mayfield (born April 14, 1995) is an American professional football quarterback for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He began his college football career with the Texas Tech Red Raiders before transferring to the Oklahoma Sooners. In 2017, he became the first Heisman Trophy winner since the introduction of athletic scholarships in the 1950s to have begun his college career as a walk-on. The Cleveland Browns selected him first overall in the 2018 NFL draft. As a rookie, Mayfield threw 27 touchdown passes, setting an NFL rookie record that stood until Justin Herbert broke it in 2020. In his NFL debut, he led the Browns to a comeback victory that ended the franchise's 19-game winless streak. In 2020, he helped Cleveland make its first playoff appearance since 2002 and win its first playoff game since 1994. After Cleveland acquired Deshaun Watson, Mayfield was traded to the Carolina Panthers in 2022 and later played for the Los Angeles Rams. Mayfield signed with Tampa Bay in 2023. In his first two seasons with the Buccaneers, he helped the team win consecutive NFC South titles and a playoff game, and he was selected to the Pro Bowl in both seasons. His career postseason passer rating of 105.9 is the highest in NFL history among quarterbacks with at least 150 attempts.
Baker Reagan Mayfield was born on April 14, 1995, in Austin, Texas, to James and Gina Mayfield. He is the younger of their two sons. His mother chose the name Baker, and his father selected Reagan as his middle name in honor of President Ronald Reagan. During Mayfield's senior year in high school, his family sold its home and moved among rental properties after his father, a private equity consultant, encountered financial difficulties. Mayfield grew up as a fan of the Oklahoma Sooners and attended the team's games with his family. His father played quarterback and punter for the University of Houston from 1967 to 1969 but did not letter. Mayfield was the starting quarterback for the Lake Travis High School Cavaliers in Austin. He posted a 25–2 record over two seasons and led the team to the 2011 Class 4A state championship. He finished his high school career with 6,255 passing yards, 67 touchdowns, and eight interceptions. Mayfield received scholarship offers from Washington State, Rice, New Mexico, and Florida Atlantic, but chose to attend Texas Tech as a walk-on.
With projected starter Michael Brewer sidelined by a back injury, Mayfield was named Texas Tech's starting quarterback shortly before the 2013 season opener against SMU. He became the first walk-on true freshman quarterback to start an FBS season opener. Mayfield completed 43 of 60 passes for 413 yards and four touchdowns in Texas Tech's 41–23 victory over SMU. His 43 completions set a Texas Tech record for a quarterback in a career debut, and he was named Big 12 Conference Offensive Player of the Week. A knee injury limited Mayfield during the season, and Davis Webb made four starts before Mayfield returned for the final two regular-season games. Mayfield finished the season with 2,315 passing yards on 218 completions in 340 attempts, with 12 touchdowns and nine interceptions. In November, Mayfield was named one of 10 semifinalists for the Burlsworth Trophy. He was later named Big 12 Offensive Freshman of the Year. In December, Mayfield announced that he would transfer from Texas Tech.
Mayfield enrolled at the University of Oklahoma in January 2014 and joined the Sooners as a walk-on. He arrived without having contacted the coaching staff and introduced himself to head coach Bob Stoops after enrolling. Mayfield sat out the season under NCAA transfer rules and worked with Oklahoma's scout team. His appeal for immediate eligibility was denied in September.
On August 24, 2015, Stoops named Mayfield the starting quarterback for the 2015 season after a competition with Trevor Knight and Cody Thomas. In his second start, he helped Oklahoma overcome a 17-point deficit to defeat Tennessee 31–24 in double overtime. The following week against Tulsa, Mayfield set an Oklahoma record with 572 yards of total offense. He passed for 487 yards and four touchdowns and rushed for 85 yards and two touchdowns in a 52–38 win. Mayfield finished the season with 3,700 passing yards, 36 touchdowns, and seven interceptions. He was named the Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year and first-team All-Big 12, won the Burlsworth Trophy, and received first-team All-America recognition from Sporting News and the Walter Camp Football Foundation. He finished fourth in Heisman Trophy voting. Oklahoma finished the regular season 11–1 and won the Big 12 championship after defeating Oklahoma State 58–23. The Sooners reached the College Football Playoff but lost 37–17 to Clemson in the Orange Bowl semifinal. Mayfield passed for 311 yards and one touchdown in the game.
In June 2016, the Big 12 amended its transfer rule to allow walk-ons who had not received a written scholarship offer from their former school to transfer within the conference without losing a season of eligibility. The change restored Mayfield's eligibility for the 2017 season. On October 22, Mayfield completed 27 of 36 passes for 545 yards and a school-record seven touchdowns in a 66–59 win over Texas Tech. Oklahoma became the first team to finish 9–0 in Big 12 regular-season play and won its second consecutive conference championship. Mayfield passed for 3,965 yards, 40 touchdowns, and eight interceptions. He led the FBS with a 70.9 completion percentage and set an FBS single-season record with a 196.4 passing efficiency rating. He finished third in Heisman Trophy voting and won the Burlsworth Trophy for the second consecutive year. In the 2017 Sugar Bowl, Mayfield completed 19 of 28 passes for 296 yards and two touchdowns as Oklahoma defeated Auburn 35–19. He received the Miller-Digby Award as the game's most outstanding player.
