Joe remembers former Bucs great Warren Sapp saying this and it’s so true.
Sapp, partially joking (?) and explaining the typical dynamics of an NFL locker room, said of offensive linemen, “They’re like cattle. They herd together.”
And he’s right.
In the locker room, no matter the team or the year, rarely do offensive linemen mingle with others. They stick together like a pack. Maybe tight ends might be embraced but other than that, they have their own little corner of the locker room.
Bucs offensive linemen are a little different. Quarterback Baker Mayfield is one of them. He’s part of their fraternity.
It’s common for Mayfield to hang outside of One Buc Palace with Tristan Wirfs, Robert Hainsey and others.
So last week when it was announced that Mayfield, who is on the cusp of joining a rare quarterback club of mostly Hall of Famers, guess who had Mayfield’s back, sticking up for their quarterback thinking he got hosed in not being named as a Pro Bowler?
Bucs offensive linemen, that’s who.
While Mayfield was named an alternate, the guys protecting Mayfield’s back on the field had his back off the field.
“Incredible!” Bucs right tackle Luke Goedeke said of Baker getting the short end of the stick. “He definitely deserves to make the Pro Bowl as a starter.
“He’s done it all for us. He plays every game like it is his last. He checks all the boxes. Yeah, I believe he was snubbed.”
Right guard Cody Mauch agreed.
“Yeah, I’d say,” Mauch said when asked if Mayfield got dissed.
“I don’t know if there are many quarterbacks better than Baker this year. Baker has been just a stud. “I don’t know what goes into [selecting Pro Bowlers]. I think Baker is one of [the best].”
Left tackle Tristan Wirfs, who was named a Pro Bowl starter, said overlooking his good friend angers the entire offensive line.
“Baker doesn’t get the credit he deserves,” Wirfs said. “And it chaps our ass.”
Bucs offensive coordinator Liam Coen swore Mayfield doesn’t give two flips over the Pro Bowl.
“He knows his worth,” Coen said. “He knows what he’s done and put out on that field this year production-wise.”
Goedeke put Mayfield’s Pro Bowl status in proper perspective.
“The Pro Bowl is not the end all, be all,” Goedeke said.
Mayfield knows what meaningful football honors are: postseason wins. And frankly, that begins tomorrow with a win-and-in game against the slimy Saints.