Tom Brady was all about football during his 23-year NFL career. He spent a lot of time preparing on and off the field and was an intense competitor. That same fire took him from the New England Patriots to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Baker Mayfield signed with the Bucs ahead of the 2023 season after Brady retired. And while the seven-time Super Bowl winner had everyone in the locker room “on their toes,” Mayfield admitted the players were a bit “stressed” with Brady as quarterback.

“With Tom, the building was a little different. Of course, Tom is different in terms of playing,” Mayfield said during a recent appearance on the Casa de Klub podcast. “He had everyone under pressure, there was a nervous atmosphere, so everyone was pretty stressed, I think.”

“Everyone expected the Bucs not to be good last year. They wanted me to come in and be myself and bring a little more joy to football for the guys who weren’t having as much fun. And just keep raising the level of competition,” he continued. “They just asked me to be myself. As a player, you really can’t ask for much more.”

Mayfield and Brady have two different personalities. Brady was also part of the Patriots for 20 years – a team built on structure. He brought what worked for him in New England to Tampa Bay and had immediate success, winning a Super Bowl in his first season with the Buccaneers.

But Mayfield’s debut and personality have served the 2023 Bucs well. They reached a 9-8 record en route to their third consecutive NFC South title. They started 2-0 this year and will look to get to 3-0 in Week 3 against a winless Denver Broncos team.