Bucs, Mayfield reach 3-year, $165M extension, sources say — SkimNews

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- Baker Mayfield and the Buccaneers agreed on a three-year, $165 million extension with $110 million in new guarantees on top of $40 million already guaranteed for 2026.
- The new deal averages $55 million per year, tied for third-highest among NFL quarterbacks, and surpasses Tom Brady's prior $50 million/two-year contract as the largest QB deal in franchise history.
- The Bucs' initial offer of two years and $50 million would have ranked Mayfield 13th among QBs — which he and agent Tom Mills rejected as too light.
- Mayfield had set a self-imposed training-camp deadline, with talks breaking off before camp and resuming only this past weekend — five days before the regular season.
- Vita Vea publicly lobbied ownership to extend Mayfield after inking his own long-term extension last month, making the defensive tackle the second Bucs holdout-turned-extension this offseason.
Why it matters: Tampa's QB contract value just more than tripled — from Tom Brady's $50M franchise high to Mayfield's $165M. The deal sets a benchmark ahead of pending extensions for C.J. Stroud, Lamar Jackson, Caleb Williams, Drake Maye, and Bo Nix, and was pushed across partly by Vita Vea publicly lobbying ownership after his own extension.
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