TAMPA, Fla. >> Baker Mayfield says he would gladly sacrifice some personal success for a few more victories.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-5) are riding a three-game losing streak and have dropped four of their past five to fall below .500 for the first time this year.
Mayfield leads the NFL in touchdown passes (23), is second in yards passing (2,389) and seventh in passer rating (105.6).
He has also thrown seven interceptions in his last four games and knows taking better care of the football will be one of the keys to the Bucs getting back on track, starting Sunday when the 49ers (4-4) visit Raymond James Stadium.
“You look at the games, some of the ones that we lost, there’s been turnover problems. And so for me, the most important thing is winning,” Mayfield said.
“I’d rather have below average stats and a lot of wins than what I have now,” the No. 1 overall pick from the 2018 draft said. “So it’s about winning for me.”
San Francisco has won its past three meetings between the teams, including by double-digits each of the past two years with Brock Purdy at quarterback.
Still, coach Kyle Shanahan remains wary of facing the Bucs with Mayfield playing as well as has while resurrecting his career with Tampa Bay.
Since joining the Bucs in 2023, Mayfield leads the NFL with 51 TD passes — four more than Jordan Love and Dak Prescott have tossed over the same span.
Only Prescott (6,494) has thrown for more than Mayfield’s 6,433 yards during that stretch.
“I think Baker is a stud. ... I thought he was at the top of his game last year, playing real well. And this year, I think he’s the same, if not better,” Shanahan said.
“He’s one of the main reasons I think they were a couple of plays away from playing us in the NFC championship game last year,” the coach added, referencing Tampa Bay’s divisional playoff loss to the Detroit Lions. “We were worried, real worried about him, going into that game.”
The Bucs, who have won three consecutive NFC South championships, find themselves struggling at the season’s mid-point for the second straight year.
With Mayfield leading the way, the Bucs won five of six down the stretch to climb out of a 4-7 hole to win the division with a 9-8 record in 2023.
“Just keep doing the little things,” coach Todd Bowles said of what the team needs to do moving forward. We play hard, we’ve just got to keep focusing on the little things. If we can clean that up, we feel like we have a good shot.”