Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield didn’t play at all in the 2025 preseason, but the team is taking a different approach this summer.
Head coach Todd Bowles said on Monday that Mayfield will be in the lineup for Tampa’s second preseason game. The Bucs will host the Chiefs on Saturday night.
Bowles said that the team’s other healthy starters will also see playing time against Kansas City. The Bucs did not play their first string against the Jets in last Friday’s preseason opener.
Mayfield is heading into the final year of his contract and spent the offseason looking for a new deal, but has been practicing at training camp despite the lack of movement toward an agreement.
Monday brought a significant change to the practice field at Buccaneers training camp.
Videos shared from the team’s practice showed left tackle Tristan Wirfs in full pads as the workout got underway. Wirfs injured his hamstring during a conditioning test at the start of camp and had been seen working on the side, but had not taken part in any practices this summer.
The two-time All-Pro is a key part of any offensive plans in Tampa and his presence on the practice field is a good sign that Wirfs will be fully ramped up in time to play in the season opener next month.
Reporters at practice note that quarterback Jake Browning is also back at practice. Browning missed the first preseason game after hurting his back in practice last week.
The Buccaneers announced a handful of roster moves ahead of this week’s second preseason game.
They have signed running back Barika Kpeenu and safety Robert McDaniel. They take the spots previously held by running back Kadarius Calloway and safety Marcus Banks. Both players were waived with injury designations, so they will revert to injured reserve if unclaimed.
Kpeenu went undrafted out of North Dakota State this year. He ran for 1,005 yards and 20 touchdowns in his final college season.
McDaniel spent last season on the Commanders’ practice squad and he was waived by Washington earlier this month. He entered the league as an undrafted free agent.
Buccaneers undrafted rookie quarterback Jalon Daniels is fourth on the depth chart, but he looked in his preseason debut like he might have an NFL future.
Daniels played the second half on Friday night and completed 10 of 15 passes for 111 yards, and also ran for a touchdown. Third-string quarterback Connor Bazelak started for the Buccaneers on a night when starter Baker Mayfield and backup Jake Browning were both off, but Daniels looked better than Bazelak, and Bucs coach Todd Bowles praised Daniels after the game.
“I thought he was very poised,” Bowles said. “He went in relaxed. We knew he could make off-schedule plays out of the pocket, but he played very confidently in the pocket. He made the right reads. He zipped some throws in there. I thought he played very well.”
Daniels spent six years at Kansas and developed a reputation as a quarterback who made plays with his legs as much as his arm, but Bowles said after the preseason opener that he appreciated Daniels trying to work within the Buccaneers’ offensive system rather than rely on his running.
“He took what they gave him,” Bowles said. “He didn’t try to get out of there too fast and he was calm under pressure, and he let the system work for him as opposed to just trying to make a play. He did some very good things tonight from a poise standpoint.”
Daniels said he’s been hard at work on learning to play in an NFL system, rather than the more improvisational style he had in college.
“We’ve worked on a lot of different things to get me out of certain habits I had in college,” Daniels said. “I have a better understanding of it than when I first got here.”
He put that on display in his preseason debut.
The Jets made a late change at quarterback on Friday and rookie Cade Klubnik got the start against the Buccaneers as a result.
Klubnik opened his first NFL appearance with a short pass to tight end Mason Taylor that turned into a 12-yard gain. The pair hooked up again for seven yards and Klubnik then found wideout Garrett Wilson twice for 32 yards. Wilson made an impressive leaping grab in traffic for a 21-yard gain on the first completion.
The Jets settled for a field goal on that drive and Klubnik let running back Braelon Allen do the heavy lifting on the next drive. Allen ran for a 31-yard touchdown on Klubnik’s final play of the night.
Klubnik finished 5-of-7 for 56 yards.
Geno Smith was expected to start the game, but the Jets scratched him just before kickoff with what head coach Aaron Glenn called ankle soreness on the CBS broadcast. Glenn said the team does not believe it is a serious issue.
