Mayfield returned from a three-game absence with a right thumb injury, but the Buccaneers barely needed him in a 43-13 blowout of Carolina. He completed 7 of 11 passes for 64 yards and a TD, added 1 carry for 1 yard and finished as QB23 for the week. Tampa Bay ran the ball 49 times against just 11 pass attempts, leaving Mayfield with only 12 dropbacks before garbage time. Four of his 7 completions went to Chris Godwin, who is working in a short-area role with a -1.4-yard aDOT. Mayfield’s lone TD came on a broken play to Tez Johnson, who filled Emeka Egbuka’s role while Egbuka sat out with a concussion and foot injury.
2026 Fantasy Football Impact
This was Mayfield’s first game since Week 3, and the passing volume was a stark change. He threw 28, 34 and 34 passes over the first three weeks, never topping 217 yards in any game. Through four games, he has 679 passing yards, 3 TDs and 2 INTs on 68-of-107 passing. He’s added 66 rushing yards and a TD on 12 carries. The defense and run game did the heavy lifting this week with two INTs and a fumble-return TD. That script won’t happen every week, but it also showed Tampa Bay won’t force the ball through the air.
The Buccaneers host Atlanta in Week 8 and visit Chicago in Week 9 before their Week 10 bye. Heading into Week 7, the Falcons ranked 12th in fantasy points allowed to QBs (18.70 per game), and the Bears ranked 15th (18.45). Neither matchup stands out. Egbuka’s status is the key factor, since Godwin’s role near the line of scrimmage limits the passing game’s upside without him. Mayfield is a mid-range QB2 who needs Egbuka back and a closer game script to be a streaming option.
