Baker

Mayfield

Mayfield appeared to twist his ankle early in the game and had his foot wrapped after the drive. He walked gingerly on the foot a few times but never missed a snap because of the issue. It’s something to watch out for on the Bucs’ injury report this week but won’t put him at risk of missing Week 15. The Raiders got consistent pressure on Mayfield, forcing four sacks, a lost fumble, and the two interceptions. Now fully in his gunlsinger era, Mayfield’s turnovers have been an issue for the Bucs but not his fantasy backers. Mayfield has scored at least three times in all but one of his five games with two or more interceptions. Mayfield will stay at the back of the QB1 ranks for his Week 15 date with the Chargers.

Mayfield gets a soft matchup against the Raiders’ fantasy-friendly pass defense this week. Given his injuries, it is fair to expect him to scramble less frequently than we would like him to but he should play efficiently as a passer. He is a borderline QB1/2.

Fantasy managers should fully expect to have Mayfield available against the lowly Raiders in Week 14, though his pass-catching corps may be short-staffed. Mike Evans (hamstring/calf) and Bucky Irving (hip/back) have missed Week 14’s first two practices.

The two injuries likely occurred on the same play. Mayfield was spun to the ground during a tackle, with his foot briefly planted in the process. The force likely stressed the inside of his knee. After hitting the ground, Panthers DE Jadeveon Clowney accidentally stepped on Mayfield’s lower leg, likely impacting the Achilles. Mayfield’s early-week participation bodes positively for his Week 14 availability though he is clearly banged up.

We don’t quite know when Mayfield suffered his injury, as the veteran quarterback was cleated by a defender on one play and had his ankle twisted on another in Sunday’s win over the Buccaneers’ win over the Panthers. Regardless, Mayfield was able to finish the game and appears to be on early track to play in Week 14 against the Raiders. Bowles said he’s unsure how much Mayfield will practice this week, so it’s possible the team gives him some added rest in what will be a pivotal Week 14 matchup for the 6-6 Buccaneers.

Mayfield was occasionally bothered by the Panthers’ pass rush, which sacked him four times and eventually left him mildly lame with an ankle sprain. The veteran signal caller was able to return but was visibly limping and gasping on a late-game scramble which he successfully converted for a first down. He is a high-end QB2 against the Raiders in Week 14.

Mayfield was sacked on consecutive plays and was brutally twisted up and taken down on the second one. After the second sack, Mayfield’s right ankle was accidentally stepped on by Jadeveon Clowney, slamming the outer side of Mayfield’s right ankle down to the ground, pinned underneath Clowney’s body weight. Update: Mayfield returned to play but immediately threw an interception.

Mayfield played through the injury in Sunday’s win over the Giants. He threw for 294 yards while completing 24-of-30 passes and appears to be good to go for Week 13’s game against the Panthers. Mayfield profiles as a low-end QB1 in what should be a plus matchup with his WR1 back in the mix.

It was an eventful day for Mayfield, who also fumbled twice, losing one of them. That came at the 9:08 mark of the fourth quarter, and Mayfield suffered a stinger in the process. It was 30-7 at the time, but Mayfield still ended up returning. That’s a bullish sign for his Week 13 availability against the Panthers. With Mike Evans back in the lineup, Mayfield unsurprisingly had his best overall start in several months. He completed 80 percent of his throws and averaged a season-best 9.8 yards per attempt. Mayfield was also totally fearless, making his presence felt as a blocker probably a little too often for the Bucs’ comfort. In this strange year for quarterbacks, Mayfield will remain in the low-end QB1 mix for Thanksgiving week even with all 32 teams active.

It was a bleak statistical day for Mayfield in a game that was really only close because the 49ers missed three field goals. Mayfield still almost willed them to victory, most vividly on the Bucs’ game-tying field goal drive with 0:41 remaining. Refusing to go down several times, Mayfield stiff armed a would-be game-ending Nick Bosa fourth down sack into oblivion by fighting toward the sideline and finding Rachaad White for an eight-yard gain. Awesome stuff, though it was otherwise impossible to stuff the stat sheet with Tampa’s injury-ruined supporting cast vs. the Niners’ stout defense. Now headed on bye, Mayfield’s fantasy fortunes could finally improve in Week 12 against the Giants if Mike Evans (hamstring) is ready to return, as is beginning to seem likely.