The Tampa Bay Buccaneers will start undrafted rookie quarterback Jalon Daniels against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday, as Baker Mayfield continues to recover from a dislocated right thumb and did not practice Thursday.
Mayfield suffered the injury late in a Week 3 loss to the Minnesota Vikings. An MRI showed no fracture or additional tendon damage, but head coach Todd Bowles had projected a minimum three-week absence. That timeline has held, leaving Daniels in place for a third consecutive start.
The injury snapped Mayfield’s streak of 57 consecutive regular-season and postseason starts since he joined the Buccaneers in 2023. Mayfield had been the only quarterback to start for Tampa Bay over that span until Daniels stepped in during Week 4.
Daniels is 1-1 as the starter. He guided the Buccaneers to a 24-16 victory over the Dallas Cowboys in Week 5, improving Tampa Bay’s record to 1-4. It was the team’s first win of the season after an 0-4 start under Mayfield.
In that Thursday night win at AT&T Stadium, Daniels completed 19 of 25 passes for 189 yards and one touchdown with no interceptions. He also rushed seven times for 23 yards. The performance came on a short week after his debut.
His first start, a 14-17 loss to the Green Bay Packers, saw him go 19 of 27 for 148 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions, plus eight carries for 55 yards. Across both outings he has shown mobility and avoided major mistakes in the second game.
Daniels is the only quarterback since starts were tracked beginning in 1950 to complete at least 70 percent of his passes, throw a touchdown, and rush for 20 or more yards in each of his first two NFL starts, according to OptaStats. He went undrafted out of Kansas.
He is also the first undrafted rookie starting quarterback to beat the Cowboys since Washington’s Ed Rubbert did so in 1987, per ESPN Insights. Rubbert’s win came during the strike-shortened season with replacement players.
Through two starts and limited earlier snaps, Daniels has completed 38 of 55 passes for 337 yards, two touchdowns and three interceptions while adding 87 rushing yards. His completion percentage sits near 69 percent overall.
At Kansas, Daniels started 45 of 49 games over six seasons. He finished with 9,282 passing yards, 67 touchdowns and 31 interceptions, along with more than 1,400 rushing yards.
Daniels entered training camp behind Mayfield and veterans Jake Browning and Connor Bazelak. Strong practices and a solid preseason allowed him to claim the backup role, and the Buccaneers released the two veterans before the season.
Mayfield had completed 61 of 96 passes for 615 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions in three starts before the injury. The Buccaneers were 0-3 at that point.
Daniels will face a Steelers defense that has been opportunistic early in the season. The game is set for 1 p.m. ET at Raymond James Stadium.
Mayfield is working his way back and has not resumed full throwing, leaving open the possibility he could miss additional time beyond Week 6 if grip strength does not return quickly.
The Buccaneers remain in the NFC South race despite the slow start, with several division games still ahead after this matchup.
