The top storyline coming out of Tampa Bay Buccaneers training camp was none other than Jalon Daniels winning the backup quarterback job behind Baker Mayfield.
The undrafted free agent quarterback entered training camp as the No. 4 quarterback behind veteran Jake Browning and Connor Bazelak, only to not only beat out both, but remain just one of just two quarterbacks on the roster. The Buccaneers released both Browning and Bazelak.
As Tampa Bay prepares for its season-opening game against the Cincinnati Bengals, Mayfield shared some details on why it was Daniels who emerged as the top backup option for the Buccaneers.
"I think for an undrafted free agent quarterback, you don't get a lot of reps, and I think the most important thing for him, I think each
rep he took, he took advantage of it," said Mayfield in a one-on-one interview with Bucs Wire. "It wasn't all pretty, don't get me wrong, but if there was a mistake in there, he corrected it to where the next time he got a rep, it was never the same mistake. I think that's the biggest difference that you can tell. He's played a lot of football that he takes advantage of those reps, learns really quickly. Doesn't have to necessarily do the rep to learn from it. "
Mayfield has a point: Daniels does have a lot of experience. Daniels played five years with the Kansas Jayhawks and started 45 of 49 career games. Over the course of his five seasons in Kansas, Daniels racked up 67 touchdowns against 31 interceptions for 9,282 passing yards. He also showed off his rushing prowess, posting 1,445 yards and 23 rushing touchdowns.
The Buccaneers' star quarterback also raved about Daniels' skill set, saying the ball "zips" out of his hand and said that the 23-year-old quarterback has a positive energy around him.
"He can watch and do certain things, and physically really talented, athletic," said Mayfield of Daniels. "Ball zips out of his hand, and he's consistently got a smile on his face. It's just somebody that you really -- I don't think you could have a bad time around. He just brings energy and juice every day, so it's fun to have him there. And for me, just trying to spread the knowledge and help him grow as quickly as possible."
Daniels had a productive preseason, going 27-of-44 passing for 239 yards with a touchdown and no interceptions. He struggled in the preseason finale against the Jacksonville Jaguars, when he went 8-of-15 in a 19-0 loss. But he impressed in the other two games, leading three consecutive scoring drives against the Kansas City Chiefs and going 10-for-15 for 111 passing yards with a rushing touchdown in his preseason debut against the New York Jets.
Considering the Buccaneers are going into the preseason with just Mayfield and Daniels at quarterback, it speaks volumes about how much confidence Tampa Bay has in their young rookie quarterback.
Baker Mayfield partnering with Sonic for $7 meal deal
Leading into the 2026 season, Mayfield is teaming up with Sonic's for their $7 meal deal. Fellow NFC South star, Atlanta Falcons running back Bijan Robinson, is also starring in the commercials.
"No, there wasn't any overlap on the filming aspect of it," said Mayfield when asked if he exchanged any trash talk with Robinson. "Bjan's great though, such a nice guy. But yeah, done quite a few commercials, but this one got to work with the director that I've known for quite a while, so had some fun with it, and you guys will see just the setup and everything. Pretty good play on words and some sarcasm, irony in there. And it was fun. It was a blast, and it's always fun to get Emily out of her comfort zone and on camera."
This article originally appeared on Bucs Wire: Baker Mayfield on how Jalon Daniels won Buccaneers backup QB job
