Baker Mayfield wanted to play, but it will be the battle for No. 2

TAMPA — Baker Mayfield wanted to play in the preseason. He wanted to stand in the pocket, stare down the gun barrel and deliver a strike while taking a hit.

But for the first time in his career, he will start the regular season without any live game reps.

Coach Todd Bowles decided last week after watching tape of the Bucs’ joint practice with the Steelers that the next game Mayfield plays will count.

And that’s fine with the Bucs starting quarterback.

“I felt like I was mentally ready,” Mayfield said. “If I needed more time to get chemistry with the guys, that would be one thing. But we’ve taken these reps extremely seriously when it comes to having to adjust on the fly, because we’re not game-planning our defense and they’ve thrown a ton of stuff at us.

“So it’s how quickly can we truly adapt on the sideline and in practice and then take it to the meetings in a game-plan setting? How can we get on the same page and do that? And that’s where I’m really confident with our group right now.”

Kyle Trask will start Saturday’s final preseason game against the Bills, Bowles said, and “then we’ll go from there.”

What does that mean? It could mean Teddy Bridgewater follows Trask into the game, still battling for the No. 2 quarterback spot. But if Bridgewater doesn’t play at all?

Well, then all bets are off. The Bucs’ fourth quarterback, Bowling Green’s Connor Bazelak, is still around for mop-up duty.

Meanwhile, Bowles won’t commit to keeping three quarterbacks on the 53-man roster. That might be even harder to do, since the team announced both injured tackle Tristan Wirfs and injured receiver Chris Godwin are coming off the physically unable to perform list though neither may be ready to play until October.

“Those are things we have to discuss after the last preseason game depending on injuries at other positions and positions of need and what we have and what we don’t have,” Bowles said of the QB dilemma. “All of that will be taken into consideration.”

When Mayfield was battling Trask for the starting job a few years ago, he was held out of the final game, a pretty big clue that he had secured the No. 1 role.

The backup quarterback battle isn’t the only one to keep an eye on Saturday.

“We’re really proud of the roster we’ve put together from top to bottom,” said assistant general manager Rob McCartney. “Obviously, there’s a lot of injury situations going on right now, so that’s kind of played into some of those guys, and unfortunately we may have to keep some guys at different positions where we think we may have depth and it’s been eroded a little bit.

“But big game for these guys on Saturday, the inside linebackers, safeties and offensive line, so those are the positions we’ll be watching closely on Saturday.”

Here’s a breakdown of the battles for the final roster spots.

Obviously, no starters will play against the Bills, so Lavonte David and SirVocea Dennis will have the night off. Veteran Anthony Walker Jr., has been injured for nearly all of training camp and may be headed for injured reserve.

You have to believe Deion Jones is on this team. Antonio Grier stepped up last week with a huge interception that set up the game-winning field goal in Pittsburgh. But Grier hasn’t played better than Nick Jackson.

The former Iowa and Virginia star played in 73 games, most in NCAA history. Undrafted, he needed to stand out among the 34 players invited to a rookie minicamp to earn an invite to training camp.

Now Jackson is one good preseason game away from living his dream as an NFL player.

“It would mean the world,” Jackson said Tuesday. “I love football. My faith, my family and football. I think that’s kind of what makes me, me. It would be a big honor. My whole life, I’ve dreamed of this moment.”

Jackson has two sacks and a one-handed interception in two games this preseason.

Another undrafted free agent, Nebraska’s John Bullock, also has given coaches something to think about. At worst, he will receive an offer from the Bucs to remain on their practice squad if he were to be released and clear waivers.

Admit it, all you want to know is whether Shilo Sanders is going to make this team. With another injury or two, the Bucs would have no choice.

Antoine Winfield Jr. and Tykee Smith are the starters. Christian Izien is out with an oblique strain. Kaevon Merriweather and Rashad Wisdom outplayed Sanders and have a leg up.

Sanders played 37 defensive snaps, recording one tackle and delivering a quarterback hit against the Titans but had two missed tackles last week at Pittsburgh. Even with Izien out, Sanders could use some splash plays against the Bills on defense or special teams.

“Shilo is very aggressive, very young and very hungry,” Bowles said. “He can make plays in the box and run down and give us 100% on special teams. This last week is going to be very important for those guys to show up.”

This position got very interesting with Jalen McMillan beginning the year on injured reserve with a neck injury. He isn’t expected back until after the Week 9 bye. Sterling Shepard has made a ton of plays in camp, and the Bucs are high on rookie Tez Johnson, particularly with his ability to return kicks.

It’s a crowded field for the final receiver spots, and there is a new opening. Trey Palmer, Rakim Jarrett and Kameron Johnson are battling it out with Ryan Miller, a converted tight end who is excelling on special teams.

“The first game, I felt like I had a really good game offensively, then the second game I know I contributed on special teams with a couple of tackles,” Miller said. “Being able to show both sides of that, (I am) trying to help my case to make this 53-man roster.

“Obviously, we’ve had some injuries, and you never want to see that. … But, yeah, we’ve got a lot of depth in this room. Like Mike Evans said, we’ve got the best group in the NFL. We’ve got to live by that, abide by that, and guys have to step up.”

Up next

PRESEASON

vs. Bills, 7:30 Saturday, Raymond James Stadium TV/radio: WFLA-Ch. 8; 97.9-FM

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Baker Mayfield wanted to play, but it will be the battle for No. 2

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