Baker Mayfield didn’t need to demand a trade or skip Tampa Bay Buccaneers training camp to deliver his message. He simply stepped in front of the cameras and made it clear that Tampa Bay’s failed contract negotiations have created one highly motivated quarterback entering the 2026 NFL season.

Mayfield is playing out the final year of his three-year, $100 million contract, and he believes the Buccaneers missed their opportunity to lock him up at a reasonable price.

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“I’m at the point in my career … I know what I’ve brought to this franchise,” Mayfield said Thursday.

The former No. 1 overall pick didn’t hide his frustration. He described Tampa Bay’s offers as “disrespectful” and said the negotiations left him feeling “undervalued.”

That’s hardly the relationship a team wants with the quarterback who helped stabilize the franchise after Tom Brady’s retirement.

“I think I’m a franchise quarterback. I’ve been told I’m a franchise quarterback. It’s been said from ownership on down,” Mayfield said. “It’s disappointing when you think you’re a cornerstone of the franchise to be treated like that.”

Now the Buccaneers have handed Mayfield something potentially dangerous: a contract-year grudge.

Mayfield’s 2025 season ended on a sour note. Over Tampa Bay’s final nine games, he averaged only 197.1 passing yards while producing 14 total touchdowns and 11 turnovers. The Buccaneers went 2-7 during that stretch and failed to win the NFC South for the first time in five seasons.

But the quarterback Tampa Bay saw in 2024 remains the reason this contract standoff could become expensive. That season, Mayfield completed a career-best 71.4 percent of his passes while throwing for 4,500 yards and 41 touchdowns.

Healthy again after battling through injuries last year, Mayfield believes he’s prepared to return to that level.

“I’m excited,” he said. “I’m in the best shape I’ve ever been in. We’re gonna have a really good team.”

A major rebound could push Mayfield into the NFL’s highest-paid quarterback tier. With Dak Prescott and Patrick Mahomes already helping establish the market at or near $60 million annually, another 4,000-yard season could put Mayfield in position to seek more than $50 million per year in free agency.

That’s the gamble Tampa Bay is making.

The Buccaneers could’ve purchased certainty before the season. Instead, they’re betting Mayfield won’t drive his value through the roof while leading a talented roster back into playoff contention.

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Mayfield clearly believes they’ll lose that bet.

“If you’ve waited this long to take care of your franchise quarterback,” he said, “that’s too bad. ’Cause it’s only gonna get worse from here.”

The Buccaneers wanted Mayfield to prove it again. He now appears determined to make the final price as painful as possible.