Baker Mayfield‘s Buccaneers are still very much on their way to win the NFC South. A win, or you can say a 48-14 rout against the Panthers, keeps the Bucs playoff hopes alive. But they are still not in control of their own fate, with the Falcons lurking behind. So don’t be surprised if you can find a few Tampa Bay supporters, including Mayfield, cheering for their NFC rival Commanders on Sunday Night.

Well, the Bucs have done their part by beating the Panthers. However, they need some help elsewhere to stay within the playoff picture. Hence, when Baker Mayfield was asked about his plans to watch the Commanders vs the Falcons, the Bucs QB declared himself as a huge admirer of their rookie QB Jayden Daniels. He said, “Big Jayden Daniels fan here. Just rooting hard, that’s it.” Here’s the thing: the Bucs’ only realistic way of making the playoffs will be through winning the NFC South.

But the Falcons have the upper hand here because of their 31-26 victory over the Bucs in October. However, they need to lose one of their last two games. Otherwise, it’s the Falcons who will wrap up the NFC South when the dust finally settles in week 18. Now, Atlanta only has the Commanders as their toughest game before facing the Panthers in week 18. So it isn’t really surprising to hear Mayfield speaking in support of Daniels, who has been simply sensational in his rookie year.

The former LSU grad is probably on his way to winning the Offensive Rookie of the Year. And why wouldn’t he? Daniels has 3,303 passing yards to his name, alongside 22 TDs and just 8 interceptions. Well, those are only his numbers on the air. Even on the ground, Daniels has shown what he can do with his rookie legs. On 128 carries, the former Heisman Trophy winner has 737 rushing yards and 6 rushing TDs. As for Daniels, he is coming off scoring 5 TDs against the Eagles last week.

And Baker Mayfield will be hoping that he brings some of that flair tonight when the Commanders take on the Falcons in Washington. While Tampa Bay’s eyes will be glued to Sunday’s Night clash in the capital, Todd Bowles may have found a gem in Bucky Irving.

Bucky Irving shows Tampa Bay what a rookie running back is capable of

Irving isn’t your first-rounder, neither second nor third. Instead, the former Oregon Ducks running back was selected in the fourth round by the Bucs. So, no one had any real expectations of him like they do for players who got selected before him. However, Bucky Irving has shown what a rookie can do if given the right opportunities. Coming into week 17’s clash against the Panthers, Irving needed just 80 rushing yards to cross the 1,000 mark as a rookie. And guess what? He is the first Bucs rookie RB to do so since Doug Martin in 2015.

Now, the Bucs also had Rachaad White in their ranks as a direct competitor to Irving. But Todd Bowles was pretty clear on his stance with the decision to start Irving instead of White, “Rachaad’s a good back, Bucky was playing better.” Well, the whole of Tampa Bay was shredding the Panthers’ defense to pieces. And the rookie RB only added to the damage by carrying the football 20 times while producing 113 rushing yards.

And besides Daniels, Irving also has an outside chance to win the Offensive Rookie of the Year. At least Tampa Bay will crown him with that accolade, even if the NFL chooses Jayden Daniels.