Washington Commanders QB targets: Should Dan Snyder’s franchise hijack Buccaneers’ Baker Mayfield pursuit?
The Washington Commanders found themselves in a quarterback quandary as three quarterbacks took snaps under center last season. Carson Wentz started eight games, while Taylor Heinicke started nine games and rookie Sam Howell took over in the last fixture for the team.
An important question for Commanders owner Dan Snyder is, should the franchise be in the market for another quarterback? More specifically, should Snyder try to get involved in the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' pursuit of Baker Mayfield? A case could be made to say yes to that question, given how all three quarterbacks performed as a unit in the 2022 season.
For starters, the Commanders finished 21st in the NFL in passing yards (3,472 yards) last season. Heinicke led the team in passing yards with 1,859 as Wentz finished with 1,755 yards. In ten starts last season, Mayfield threw for 2,163 yards with two different teams.
Baker Mayfield started six games with the Carolina Panthers and four with the Los Angeles Rams last season. The former number-one overall pick has had success as a starting quarterback in the NFL, starting 59 games over the course of four seasons with the Cleveland Browns.
The 27-year-old led the Browns to their last playoff appearance, which was in the 2020 season. Taylor Heinicke and Carson Wentz have been unable to lead the Washington Commanders to the postseason in their time with the franchise.
The Commanders obviously still need a QB to compete with Sam Howell. Among the QBs still available on the market: Baker Mayfield, Andy Dalton, Jacoby Brissett, Teddy Bridgewater, Marcus Mariota, Gardner Minshew.
Also Tom Brady and Carson Wentz.
Currently, neither Wentz nor Heinicke are on the Commanders roster entering the 2023 season. Washington parted ways with Wentz back in February while Heinicke signed with the Atlanta Falcons this offseason.
Mayfield could compete for the starting job versus Sam Howell for the starting job in Washington. Ideally, he would be facing a similar situation with the Buccaneers, competing with Kyle Trask. The Heisman Trophy winner might prefer the Commanders over the Buccaneers based on their overall offense.
Why Baker Mayfield could thrive with the Washington Commanders?
Mayfield seemingly wants to be a starter given his time with the Browns and the Washington Commanders could give him that shot. The signal-caller will be slinging the ball to Pro Bowl wide receiver Terry McLaurin and wideout Jalen Dotson, the team's top pick in last year's draft.
The duo of Mike Evans and Chris Godwin is enticing, but the turnover of the coaching staff in Tampa Bay could lead to uncertainty offensively. The Commanders also have a proven offensive coordinator in Eric Bieniemy, who won two Super Bowls with the Kansas City Chiefs.
Snyder's selling point to Baker Mayfield is that you have an experienced coaching staff with great talent offensively to succeed. Time will tell if the Washington Commanders can cut the Buccaneers off at the pass to get Mayfield.