Brian Hoyer: Baker Mayfield Looking Up At Kirk Cousins
June 28th, 2024
With 16 years at quarterback for eight NFL franchises, Brian Hoyer’s opinion is one Joe is willing to consider.
The former Tom Brady backup who had a Kyle Trask-like start to his career jumped into the media pool this summer after mopping up for the imploding Raiders last season.
Hoyer was a co-host on SiriusXM NFL Radio today and was asked to rank the NFC South quarterbacks. Sadly, he cited consistency and put Falcons healing 35-year-old newcomer Kirk Cousins atop the division.
Hoyer views 29-year-old Baker Mayfield as the No. 2 dog in the race.
Mayfield had a great bounceback season, Hoyer said, and “finally found a home.” He views Mayfield as still improving wheres he sees slimy Saints QB Derek Carr as a guy whose NFL best is behind him.
Joe’s not surprised by the many ex-players smitten by the numbers of Cousins. It’s not easy to argue with nine consecutive seasons of solid/strong stats (four Pro Bowls) including in 2023. That kind of production deserves great respect.
Still, Cousins has only one playoff win to his name and now he’s got a surgically-repaired Achilles and a new offense and teammates to worry about.
Joe happily would take Mayfield, even if Mayfield somehow got a $20 million raise and was earning Cousins money.
June 28th, 2024 at 6:53 pm
But Baker has MOXIE, does Cousins? haha
June 28th, 2024 at 7:03 pm
Couldn’t beat him head, to head last year. We were heavy underdogs, they had Cousins, we had Mayfield was the logic. Let’s not forget they were home in a loud dome. Those who don’t learn from history, are doomed to repeat it. Let them keep betting against us.
June 28th, 2024 at 7:09 pm
You keep brining up the post-season Joe, but you have to preform in the regular season to get there. Kirk has undoubtedly been a much better regular season QB than Baker. It’s not even close. His worst year with Vikings would be a career best year for Baker. Now the achilles is potentially a real issue. I’m less inclined to think it will have a tremendous impact because he’s a pocket QB, but no one truly knows until he goes out and plays. If it doesn’t impede him too much the Falcons will have the QB advantage, but I think the Bucs have the better overall team. It should be an interest fight for the division. Wouldn’t be surprised if the Saints hang in there too
June 28th, 2024 at 7:13 pm
Captain Kirk will mop the Floor with Bucs!!!!
Listen up here Joe,
You don’t put together a resume like Captain Kirk to be anything other than a very good QB and for anyone to doubt otherwise is a complete idiot.
BAKER HAD ONE!!!! ONE!!!! decent season……with the Bucs last year, and that wasn’t against good opponents all the time.
…..let’s see if Baker does it again
June 28th, 2024 at 7:27 pm
>>>His worst year with Vikings would be a career best year for Baker.
False. Cousin’s worst year with the Vikings was actually 2022. He put up 4500 yards in 17 games, largely due to the Vikings throwing relentlessly. His YPA was a fairly pedestrian 7.1, a number Baker has beaten several times.
His TDs to INTs were 29 and 14, a ratio Baker has beaten in two seasons, including the one in Tampa.
His Passer Rating was 92.5, well below the norm for MN, and perhaps an indication that his best years were behind him. Baker has beaten that passer rating 3 times.
His QBR was 52.3, which lagged behind even Mayfield’s much debated 54.3 from last year. That figure is well below the 65.5 posted in 2020. Indeed, that 65.5 is better than anything Kirk posted with the Vikings.
His 46 sacks taken that year were a career high, and indeed, higher than Mayfield has ever reached.
So no, Kirk’s worst year would not be a career year for Mayfield. It would, in fact, represent a step back for him from last year. The fact that it also happens to be Kirk’s most RECENT full season, possibly the indication of a downturn due to age(he was doing well in 2023 before getting hurt, but we have no idea if he keeps that up in the second half) is something that should concern Falcons fans more than it seems to, even without taking the Achilles injury into account.
June 28th, 2024 at 8:02 pm
He could go all the way.
June 28th, 2024 at 8:17 pm
The NFL has officially left all pocket passers behind. Modern QBs (2023-2024) can either scramble, run, move the pocket, or improvise (all three). Not saying Cousins isn’t or wasn’t a good QB I’m saying the game has passed him by and that’s the exact reason they drafted a modern version early. Could see them using both of them this year.
June 28th, 2024 at 8:33 pm
Jim Kelly took the Bills to four consecutive Super Bowls. He was 0-4. Got blown out in three, and a missed FG cost him the other.
Many consider him a loser, but I’m not one of them.
In that vein, how about we let Baker take us to one Super Bowl before we think he deserves a 20 million dollar raise.
The bar is awfully low around here.
June 28th, 2024 at 8:41 pm
BucsAnthem always talking smack lol gotta be a division rival
June 28th, 2024 at 9:19 pm
“The NFL has officially left all pocket passers behind. Modern QBs (2023-2024) can either scramble, run, move the pocket, or improvise (all three)”
Mahomes (a tier all to himself) can do that. Jackson, Tagovailoa…Hurts, are useless without their running ability
June 28th, 2024 at 9:52 pm
Beej—
Tua? Running ability?
He rushed for 74 total yards last year!
June 28th, 2024 at 10:11 pm
Todd knows how to defend Kirk’s Cousin. One of the few QBs he cn confuse and rattle.
#AsToddEvolves
June 28th, 2024 at 10:21 pm
Ol busted Achilles Cousins better be able to roll out and roll out fast when Vea and Kancey are working that middle. Gonna be a long game for Kirk in week 5. I hope the gameplan there is, maybe let them get a couple big plays, but we are sending heat and will take a roughing the passer or 2. I’d be looking to hit that old body hard and often.
June 28th, 2024 at 11:41 pm
Hoyer was a good high school QB and that’s about all there is to say about him. Interesting that he has hung around long enough to get a nice NFL pension. Mayfield was the best thing that happened to the reborn Browns. Mayfield is on an ascendancy that will look a lot like Drew Brees career. Cousins is damaged goods and is heading downward. Not worried about Baker proving who is the best QB in the NFC South. Stay tuned.
.
June 29th, 2024 at 12:27 am
One things for sure, Hoyer knows what suck looks like.
June 29th, 2024 at 12:30 am
BAKER HAD ONE!!!! ONE!!!! decent season……with the Bucs last year
You do realize that baker has only played one season with the Bucs. Right?
I’m not really sure if you was trying to be funny, or if your just a troll that doesn’t know anything about what going on in the world of football. Maybe just a saints fan simply because you think the colors are pretty.
Smh.
June 29th, 2024 at 3:28 am
Media pundit Brian Hoyer is of the OPINION that Kirk Cousins as the #1 dog in the NFC South. Good for him; so do about 1000 other talking heads. We all KNOW that’s just bulletin board fodder & feeds that chip on Baker’s shoulders.
Mayfield & Cousins are 2 VERY different QBs whose careers don’t exactly parallel each other. Only time will tell, but I suspect that BOTH of them will be at least adequate for their respective TEAMS. And that’s what’s really important: the quality of the TEAM surrounding each of them.
My guess at this point is that we’ll both have winning seasons, and that the NFC South champion come down to how well we do against each other. If 1 beats the other twice, that team will win the NFC South, but if we split, it’s all up for grabs. The 2nd-place team could very likely still go to the playoffs, as a wildcard.
Gut feeling is that Falcons will end up with a slightly higher-ranked offense, but that the Bucs will be considerably better on defense. And that we’ll have the better Special Teams. On balance, I’d say that the scales tip towards the Bucs. But that’s quite irrelevant since we still have to play the games, and that’s where the rubber meets the road.
June 29th, 2024 at 4:32 am
They way they hype up cousins makes me think next we will see stupid articles like Cousins a Lock for HoF lmao
June 29th, 2024 at 5:38 am
The sport media are all in on Cousins. They might as well roll the dice. About the same thing. I like Cousins and he is probably a great mentor for others in the locker room. But he isn’t the Goat returning and moving to another team. The Goat has 7 SB rings. Cousins has none. And did the media forget that the Falcons drafted Penix? Why do they really think they did that… Because they are uncertain about Cousins. They are giving Cousins such a large applaud. If he falters, what will they all say? Oops.
June 29th, 2024 at 7:38 am
Shut up @ Walter
With a a name like “Walter” we can all assume you have no mojo or moxie.
Baker is way tougher than Cousins. Cousins should retire. He has been getting crushed the past 3 years.
He’s been beaten to a pulp.
For real.
He needs to retire.
June 29th, 2024 at 7:58 am
If Cousins is healthy, he’ll get his yards. So I think we need to get ours. In other words it will have to be a shootout because I still don’t think our DBs can hold up against any QB. Except Winfield.
June 29th, 2024 at 10:24 am
Cousins cousins cousins, what has he ever done ?? Not a lot really. How many years of just kinda getting the job done. What’s so special about him that everyone talks highly about him? He’s been around how long? A pedestal he is not deserving of, Baker has been around a lot less than ole Cuzy boy and he’s got two playoff wins. If he recaptures himself from last year he should get a little further in the playoffs this year and hopefully the Superbowl. Even if he loses the SB that’s a lot more than Cousins in less time as well. So when everyone decides to get off Cousins Jock Strap and sees the light without all the fuzziest in their faces we can all say it about his career, MEH, Hahaha!!!
June 29th, 2024 at 11:16 am
Any GM with half a brain would take Baker after the year he just had. Bakers gonna be just fine and I expect year 2 here to be even better. He’s gonna do great things in Tampa. Let’s go Baker!
June 29th, 2024 at 11:17 am
Cousins reminds me of Dave Winfield. Steinbrenner, comparing his LACK of post-season production to Reggie Jackson (“Me October”) called Dave “Mr May”
June 29th, 2024 at 1:07 pm
Here’s PinellasParkPud spewing meaningless ignorance again. Congrats on being a Fowlcons fan, hope you have a Kyle doll you can hug while watching Cousins get curb stomped in his first three games while Baker and Todd put on a show for the early division lead.
June 29th, 2024 at 1:29 pm
TheBucsAnthem Says:
You don’t put together a resume like Captain Kirk to be anything other than a very good QB and for anyone to doubt otherwise is a complete idiot.
Lee Go Bucs Says:
BAKER HAD ONE!!!! ONE!!!! decent season……with the Bucs last year
^^^^^^
Huh? In 2020, the Browns (with Baker) were one play away from playing the Bucs in the Super Bowl. They got hosed by the refs. Baker took them to the AFC Championship Game.
Cousins has one playoff win in 12 seasons.
What matters to you? Stats or wins.
Jameis Winston has 2x4K seasons and 1x5kseason. So what?
June 29th, 2024 at 1:39 pm
There sure are a lot of people high on the copium regarding Mayfield. He had ONE good year for the Bucs and barely threw over 4000 yards and not even 30 TDs. Kirk throws 4000+ yards and 30 TDs like clockwork every season. What has Kirk done? A better question is…what has a first round draft pick (who was drafted BEFORE Mahomes)done? Mayfield was considered a bust before the 2023 season. He’s not even a franchise QB…but just a journeyman QB who hasn’t been consistent in anything. Until Mayfield can string together consecutive successful seasons, he is overhyped.
Sure Mayfield has more playoff wins, but he’s also been one and done in the playoffs in two separate seasons. That’s not very impressive.
And about Kirk’s low QBR in 2022? In ESPN’s QBR stat, plays are no longer up-weighted for clutch situations and winning the game. So, all of those fourth quarter comebacks (eight of them which led the league) is the reason that his QBR was so low in 2022.
June 29th, 2024 at 1:45 pm
My money is on the QB that has a Heisman Trophy, beat Mahomes in a shoot out and carried the Browns to the playoffs in his first year in the NFL.
With a decent offensive line and receivers this may be the year Baker finally gets the respect he deserves.
June 29th, 2024 at 1:57 pm
Pud and PinellasParkPud must be twins.
A brain dead bovine makes more sense.
June 29th, 2024 at 2:09 pm
@teacherman1983 Says: “Baker is way tougher than Cousins”
Oh really? Mayfield sure showed how tough he was after he injured himself while trying to make a simple tackle three years ago…smh. Kirk was the most hit QB in 2022 and still never missed a game and he never got hurt making a tackle either.
And….Kirk still throws dimes while he’s getting hit. The same can’t be said about Mayfield.
June 29th, 2024 at 2:57 pm
Ahahahhaha
Brian Hoyer??!!
Brian effing Hoyer??!!! You listen to that guys opinion?
What a chump who played for what 15 season and had 2 playoff appearances… we really are going to listen to his opinion on anything.
So, a guy needs to be a top player for his take to be worthwhile? That’s silly. If Demar Dotson got into broadcasting, would his offensive line opinions be irrelevant because he played on a decade’s worth of bad Bucs teams?–Joe
Here’s an opinion for Brian, you should have quit after your Cleveland/houstan stint and joined the TV crews you loser.
Joe you must be running out of quality things to write about. Can’t wait for preseason so you can actually write about things of substance.
June 29th, 2024 at 5:45 pm
I stay confused by the way people on here that just don’t like Baker WHY? He was part of a team that the same people that love Tom Brady said Bardy was amazing and took to the playoffs. Baker did the same thing took the bucs to the playoffs right, with most of the same player. If you want to root for a different team please feel free to go to their blog and root you a– off for them, please get gone. Is Baker the in the Top 5 maybe not but 10 definitely so shut the hell up. I for one am tired of you chump comments about my Buccaneers quarterback I am sick of it Joe.
June 29th, 2024 at 7:19 pm
Huh? In 2020, the Browns (with Baker) were one play away from playing the Bucs in the Super Bowl. They got hosed by the refs. Baker took them to the AFC Championship Game
Get your facts straight. 2020 with a phrase that Joe likes “ Mayfield was a couple plays from asking the Browns to the AFC Championship.
Builds and Chiefs played the AFC Championship game in 2020.
At least I am starting to understand how Mayfield became so Great. People over stating his achievements.
June 30th, 2024 at 1:15 am
Hoyer played behind some terrible lines.
Took alot of head shots
Im just saying, how many concussions until your thought process starts to get a little fuzzy.
Look at poor Shaun King, for Pete’s sake!
QBs, RBs, and WRs take head shots like human “whack-a-moles!”
Those newly designed helmets came a little to late for some guys.
For Offensive analysis, stick to Offensive linemen.
Right, Brian Baldinger?
June 30th, 2024 at 5:27 pm
This is a plus as well as a negative for Cousins, Mayfield has as many Championship games and Super Bowl wins as he does. Since 2015 Cousins has been consistently good to very good where as Mayfield has never been. Like it was said in another story Mayfield is a boom or bust qb. The only thing he’s never been good enough to over come the teams short comings and nor the team his even when he was boom. I can see why Cousins is still ranked ahead of him.
June 30th, 2024 at 5:50 pm
Love how the fanboos feelings get so hurt by players who played the same position. It’s priceless. Hell hath no fury like women scorned right?
DConehead since when has Baker been great???
Stan didn’t Eminem write a song about you??? Why would Buc fans root for another team??? Most of you fanboos were never up here until after the Bucs allowed Mayfield to get up off the trash heap after the NFL finally discarded him. If Blowles wasn’t in desperate need of keeping his job after his 2022 debacle with Brady’s final year Mayfield might have never seen a Bucs uniform. You should put your keyboard down and go back to playing with your Baker Mayfield doll house.