TAMPA — Baker Mayfield will face the Cleveland Browns, the franchise that drafted him, for the first time as a Buccaneer in Week Two of the 2026 season at Raymond James Stadium, kicking off a three-game homestand that includes NFC North opponents Minnesota and Green Bay in Weeks Three and Four.
“It is just about winning,” Mayfield said on the Rich Eisen Show. “I could care less about what is going on with their quarterback situation in their building, it is just about beating them and letting them know that I found a home.”
Mayfield enters 2026 in a contract year after completing 343 of 543 attempts (63.2%) for 3,693 yards, 26 touchdowns and 11 interceptions in 2025. He spearheaded Tampa Bay’s 6-2 start last season, highlighted by a 38-35 win over the Seattle Seahawks in Week Five in which he completed 29 of 33 passes (87.9%) for 379 yards and two touchdowns with zero interceptions, posting a 134.7 passer rating. Mayfield rushed for a career-high 382 rushing yards in 2025 and converted 21 of 29 third-down rushes for first downs, a 72.4% success rate that ranked him ninth among NFL quarterbacks in rushing yards.
Wide receiver Chris Godwin Jr., entering Year 10 as the elder statesman in Tampa Bay’s receiver room, described his mental approach after missing five games in 2025 with a fibula injury. “I am someone who has always prided myself on being as prepared as possible,” Godwin said on the Green Light Podcast. “The way that I look at it is regardless of how my career turns out or the level of success that I reach or don’t reach, I want to be able to look myself in the mirror and say that I gave it my all because that I can live with. Sometimes, things are not in the cards for you, but if you put your best foot forward, then you don’t have any regrets.”
Godwin led the NFL in receptions in 2024 before suffering a significant ankle injury. Fully healthy, he has reverted to his slot role, where his physicality in traffic and ability to generate yards after the catch elevated the Buccaneers’ offense.
Rookie defensive lineman Rueben Bain Jr., who recorded 33.5 tackles for loss and 20.5 sacks over 38 college games at Miami and led the FBS in pressures with 83 during his junior campaign, joined Godwin on the podcast to discuss his transition to Todd Bowles’ system. “Luckily for me, I got the best of both worlds, I played on four downs, three downs, so coming into the league, I am ready and have already seen it versus me coming in kind of blind on my first experience with it and got it out of the way,” Bain said.
NFL.com analyst Ben McWilliams selected the Buccaneers as his NFC South champions in a preseason prediction, citing a “motivated” Mayfield in a contract year as the catalyst under new offensive coordinator Zac Robinson. Tampa Bay opens its three-game homestand against Cleveland in Week Two at Raymond James Stadium.