With just under two minutes left in the third quarter of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' eventual 51-27 win in New Orleans in Week Six, and his team clinging to a slim 31-27 lead in a back-and-forth affair, Baker Mayfield took a snap on third-and-nine from the Buccaneers' 34. Blitzing cornerback Alontae Taylor got around the left end of the Bucs' line and had a free run at Mayfield, who somehow managed to spin away from him twice before taking off on a scramble.
Headed directly towards the first-down marker, Mayfield eschewed the feet-first slide and tried to get the first down. He paid for the decision, taking a helmet shot from defensive end Carl Granderson on the hip and then getting driven into the turf by 305-pound defensive tackle Bryan Bresee. Mayfield was slow to get up and in obvious discomfort on the sideline but proved to have just had the wind knocked out of him.
Mayfield didn't get the desired result for the price he paid at the end of the run, as he was marked down inches short of the line to gain and the Bucs chose to punt it away. He was right back on the field just a few minutes later after Zyon McCollum intercepted Spencer Rattler on the first play of the fourth quarter, and he showed he was fine by hustling down the field to deliver a block on Bucky Irving's weaving 31-yard run.
For the most part, however, Mayfield has succeeded on his forays into the open field this season. He has produced nine first downs with his legs, including four that converted third downs. Mayfield has chosen his spots well, and his head coach, Todd Bowles, has approved of the quarterback's decision-making.
"He's running intelligently," said Bowles. "If everybody has got their back turned and there's a lane there, obviously he's smart enough to take it and understand when he has to get down. He makes some very calculated runs. We don't need him to run, but every now and then, they cover all the guys and you have to make a play, and he makes a play."
Even if it's not by design, Mayfield is also running the ball more than he has at any point in his career. He has already recorded 136 yards and two touchdowns on the ground, putting him on pace for 385 yards by season's end, which would be a career high by a wide margin. His current top mark is 165 in 2020 when he was with the Cleveland Browns, and in all five previous seasons in which he has started at least a dozen games he has finished somewhere between 131 and 165.
"Some of the times I've taken off, it's been man-to-man coverage where kind of the seas part a little bit," said Mayfield. "Taking advantage of matchups – most of the time it's been third downs but yeah, when it's there, if there's free yards, take it, but my job is to distribute to our skill guys that are much more athletic than I. But yeah, just taking advantage of what the defense is giving us and sometimes that's a free rush lane for me."
Mayfield laughed on Thursday when one of the questions about his running ability was framed to include such names as Lamar Jackson, Jayden Daniels and Josh Allen. He does not consider himself in the same category as those prolific running quarterbacks, who frequently have runs designed for them. The Bucs won't be putting a section in their playbook to have Mayfield as a primary ballcarrier, but they are happy with what he is providing with his legs.
"He's mobile enough to get the yards we need," said Bowles. "You don't have to be a fast quarterback to be a mobile quarterback. He understands the pocket, he understands when he has to run and he's great at that."
His runs tend to fire up his teammates, too, particularly when he tries to power his way to the first down through multiple defenders.
"Baker definitely has a lot of skill to him that you wouldn't expect with looking at him," said running back Sean Tucker, the NFC's current Offensive Player of the Week. "Every game, he's always scrambling, getting out of tough tackles and escaping and then making a play on the ball. He definitely has some ability and helps us in plays for us."
And even though his most recent third-down scramble ended with a couple fewer inches and a couple more massive hits than he would have liked, he's still going to go for it when he knows his team needs a first down.
"Yeah, it's a lot of a mindset," said Mayfield. "It comes down to the mindset of third down, trying to get a first down, who wants it more in some situations, and obviously still being smart at the same time when I am scrambling trying to get down and if it's the third down, trying to get it."
