Baker Mayfield Dislocates Thumb On Throwing Hand As Winless Buccaneers Fall To 0-3

Baker Mayfield's rough start to the 2026 season got worse on Sunday. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback dislocated the thumb on his throwing hand during a 23-16 home loss to the Minnesota Vikings, according to head coach Todd Bowles.

The injury happened on fourth-and-13 with under two minutes left. Mayfield was trying to save the game, got hit by Vikings linebacker Blake Cashman as he threw, and jammed his right thumb on Cashman's arm mid-release, according to CBS Sports and Larry Brown Sports. The pass sailed into the hands of Minnesota's Andrew Van Ginkel for the interception.

What happened next drew coverage from every outlet. Mayfield went down on the turf grabbing his hand and screaming, loud enough that NBC Sports reported his screams were audible on the broadcast. WMBD Radio, citing Field Level Media, reported his thumb was bloody and that he slammed his helmet to the ground walking off the field toward the locker room.

Bowles confirmed the dislocation after the game and said Mayfield would get an MRI on Monday. "He'll get an MRI tomorrow just to see exactly what inside is wrong with it, so we'll know more tomorrow," Bowles told reporters, according to Fox News and CBS Sports. Bowles also said X-rays taken at Raymond James Stadium did not show a fracture.

X-rays don't show ligament damage, and dislocated thumbs on a throwing hand often come with torn ligaments that require surgery. If Mayfield needs an operation, he's looking at a minimum four-game stint on injured reserve, and his return timeline after that depends on how fast he regains grip strength in the hand he uses to throw a football for a living.

Mayfield declined to speak with reporters after the game, according to WMBD Radio.

The backup situation is not pretty

With Mayfield out, undrafted rookie Jalon Daniels took the final snaps. He went 0-for-3 passing, including a Hail Mary that Minnesota's Isaiah Rodgers intercepted to seal the loss, and scrambled once for nine yards. Daniels is the only other quarterback on Tampa Bay's 53-man roster. Easton Stick, who went 0-4 as a starter for the Los Angeles Chargers in 2023, is on the practice squad. Bowles indicated Daniels will start next Sunday against the Green Bay Packers if Mayfield can't go, per WMBD Radio.

Mayfield signed a three-year, $165 million extension just weeks before the season, an average of $55 million a year that ties him as the third-highest-paid quarterback in the NFL, according to CBS Sports and WMBD Radio. Ground News flagged that the moment is already generating fan backlash, with commentary calling the deal a "massive mistake" after a five-sack outing in the loss.

Before he got hurt, Mayfield completed 17 of 34 passes for 217 yards, one touchdown and one interception. The touchdown was the 199th of his career. Tampa Bay is 0-3, its worst start since 2014, and per CBS Sports Research, the sixth team in the past decade to open 0-3 with all three losses by one score.

Minnesota didn't escape unscathed either. Wide receiver Justin Jefferson suffered an ankle injury in the same game, per the Associated Press report carried by Ground News. Myles Price returned a punt 86 yards for a touchdown and Minnesota's quarterback threw a 41-yard scoring pass to Jordan Addison in the win.

Fox News packaged its coverage of Mayfield's injury inside a broader segment on a league-wide spike in quarterback injuries this season, name-checking Giants rookie Jaxson Dart's season-ending knee tear and Washington's Jayden Daniels elbow injury. That's a real storyline worth watching, but Mayfield's injury came down to a single hit from Blake Cashman on a desperation throw, not any systemic pattern specific to Tampa Bay.

The MRI results, expected sometime after Monday, will determine whether Mayfield's season is paused for a month or over entirely. Until then, the Buccaneers' playoff hopes rest on an undrafted rookie who has yet to complete an NFL pass under pressure.