Baker Mayfield has the unenviable task of replacing Tom Brady - but his new head coach has told him to not even think about doing that.
Mayfield has joined the Tampa Bay Buccaneers following Brady’s retirement, which leaves a gaping hole in the offense. Mayfield will have high hopes of showing the promise which saw him drafted first overall in the 2018 NFL Draft and showing he can go some way to matching Brady’s performances.
But his own coach, Todd Bowles, has sent a brutally honest message to Mayfield - telling him not to try and be "the guy" like Brady and instead lean into their other players to become a success.
“You don't need to be the guy; you need to rely on the 10 guys around you,” Bowles told reporters at the NFL's Annual League Meeting in Phoenix last week.
“You don't need to be the guy. We are not looking for a guy to come in here and be Superman. We have great players, you have Mike Evans, you have Chris Godwin, you have Rachaad [White], you have Tristan [Wirfs], you have Ryan Jensen, you have Cade Otton coming;
“You have guys that you can play with and pieces, so you do not have to be the guy. You just really need to drive the car.”
Whilst he appeared to suggest Mayfield will fall some way short of Brady in his ability to carry the team, that is no huge slight given he is replacing arguably the greatest quarterback of all-time. And Bowles also hailed the “excitement” and desire the former Cleveland Browns signal caller will bring to his side.
“Guys naturally gravitate towards him,' Bowles said of Mayfield. 'He has an excitement he brings towards the game and he's hungry.
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“I can live with that right there. I liked him a couple years ago and that we've got him now with an opportunity to have a chance to start, I think that's a good thing for us.”
Meanwhile, Mayfield agreed after joining the Bucs that playing the same role as Brady will be impossible.
“Listen, I'm never going to be Tom Brady,” Mayfield told reporters. “There's a reason he's won so many Super Bowls. He's the greatest of all time.
“There's no doubt about that. I'm not going to try to be Tom. I'm going to be me. That's what has gotten me to this point. We're going to do it differently, but that's what makes this league so special. Everybody puts their own touch on it.”
Kyle Trask will also be involved in the battle to be the Buccaneers’ next starting quarterback. They will return to the field as organised team activities (OTAs) begin on May 23.
