Baker Mayfield will miss his third consecutive game on Sunday after dislocating the thumb on his throwing hand. But the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ offense has found a groove that wasn’t there when he was playing.
Taking over for the injured quarterback is Jalon Daniels, an undrafted rookie from Kansas who became the first rookie quarterback to start an NFL game this season, before all 10 quarterbacks selected in the 2026 NFL Draft. Now, one former Buccaneers star believes Daniels should remain the starter for now.
Ex-Bucs RB Leonard Fournette Makes His Case for Jalon Daniels Starting Over Baker Mayfield
Although this is Mayfield’s team, especially after he signed a three-year, $165 million contract extension in September, Leonard Fournette believes Daniels could be a better fit for what Tampa Bay wants to do offensively. That belief only grew after Daniels led the Buccaneers to their first win of the season against the Dallas Cowboys last week.
The former Super Bowl champion and LSU star made his feelings clear on his podcast, “4th and South.”
“I think, me personally, Jalon Daniels is a perfect fit for the Bucs right now,” Fournette said. Former NFL wide receiver Jarvis Landry, his co-host, quickly asked, “Why?”
Fournette explained, “They’re winning. Duh. They’re winning. When Baker was back there, they wasn’t winning nothing. So I think [the injury] was a blessing and curse. I’m not wishing nobody get hurt, but at the same time, he’s giving them more opportunity to win.”
Fournette also argued that Daniels doesn’t necessarily have to be a better decision-maker than Mayfield for Tampa Bay to stick with him.
“And I’m not saying Jalon’s decision-making is better than Baker, which to me is even, ’cause Baker threw his picks, he fumbles, he does a lot. But at the end of the day, what can you do for me now?” Fournette added.
“They are winning. I say keep Daniels in until we figure it out. Yes, Baker got a 100-million-dollar contract. But [expletive] that. We wanna win, coach.”
After struggling against the Green Bay Packers in his first start, completing 19 of 27 passes for 148 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions, Daniels looked much sharper on Thursday Night Football against Dallas. He completed 19 of 25 passes for 189 yards and a touchdown without an interception.
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Daniels also offers a threat on the ground, rushing for 55 yards against Green Bay and another 23 against Dallas. To Fournette’s point, Mayfield currently ranks No. 32 in PFN’s QB Impact Score with a 63.2 grade, while Daniels is the 19th-best QB with a 72.9 grade this season.
Landry also acknowledged that Daniels gives the Bucs “the best chance of winning,” while making it clear that he’s not ready to give up on Mayfield after just two games from an undrafted rookie.
“Baker, he’s a winner. Baker’s gonna figure it out,” Landry said. “It’s unfortunate he got hurt the time he got hurt… But you’re right. I think the Daniels kid gives them the best chance of winning. There’s nothing like having a great backup.”
Mayfield threw for 615 yards, two touchdowns, and two interceptions through three games this season.
However, let’s not forget that he has surpassed 4,000 passing yards twice and thrown at least 25 touchdowns in each of his first three seasons with the Buccaneers. Mayfield ranked No. 4 among quarterbacks with a QB Impact Score of 86.1 in 2024 before dropping to No. 22 with a 74.4 grade in 2025. He has also led Tampa Bay to the playoffs twice, making it difficult to justify handing his job to an undrafted rookie based on one win.
If Mayfield struggles after returning from injury and the Buccaneers start losing, the conversation could change. How Daniels plays this weekend against the Pittsburgh Steelers will also factor into the Bucs’ decision-making.
This article originally appeared on Pro Football Network.