Baker Mayfield says Tom Brady had Buccaneers locker room stressed out: ‘A lot of mind games going on’

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The New England Patriots are still struggling to replace Tom Brady under center, but it didn’t take the Tampa Bay Buccaneers long. They signed former No. 1 overall pick Baker Mayfield to a one-year deal in 2023, and he earned a three-year, $115 million extension after leading the Bucs to an NFC South title, and a postseason victory.

While Mayfield is talented in his own right, it must have been a massive change for the Buccaneers to go from the greatest quarterback of all time to someone else. But maybe in some ways it was better. During a recent appearance on the Casa de Klub podcast, Mayfield said that Brady’s intensity led to a stressed locker room. 

“The building was a little bit different with Tom in there. Obviously, playing-wise, Tom is different. He had everybody dialed in, high-strung environment, so I think everybody was pretty stressed out,” Mayfield said, via Pro Football Talk. “They wanted me to come in, be myself, bring the joy back to football for guys who weren’t having as much fun.”

Mayfield said he and Brady have “very different personalities.” He also said Brady would play “mind games,” and that included an unseen battle between quarterback and play-caller. 

“You hear some of the stories about if he didn’t like a certain play call and he didn’t like it throughout the week and they still call it in the game, there might have been a throwaway on purpose or throwing it at the running back or receiver’s feet,” Mayfield said. “There were a lot of mind games going on.”

Not only will Brady go down as the greatest quarterback of all time, but also as one of the fiercest competitors of all time. He held not only himself, but his entire team to the highest standard, which could definitely…

Source link : https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/baker-mayfield-says-tom-brady-had-buccaneers-locker-room-stressed-out-a-lot-of-mind-games-going-on/

Author : Jordan Dajani

Publish date : 2024-09-21 14:52:41

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