It was very surprising to learn that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers only offered quarterback Baker Mayfield a two-year contract extension.

Most of the speculation leading up to Mayfield's training camp deadline to reach an agreement on a new deal centered on whether Tampa would be willing to offer their QB $50 million/year. That was the number seen as the baseline for franchise quarterbacks and represented the benchmark it would take to keep Mayfield long-term.

The Bucs did offer $50 million/year, but Mayfield ripped the team for its offer, saying he felt "disrespected" and "undervalued."

Mayfield's comments caused a stir and made the Bucs very unhappy with him for airing his grievances publicly. Some sided with Mayfield in the dispute, while others criticized the quarterback.

If the Bucs offered the $50 million, why was Mayfield so upset?

It wasn't the money, but rather the length of the extension Tampa offered that drew Mayfield's ire. The team only offered a two-year extension, far shorter than the contracts other franchises had given their own franchise quarterbacks.

Now we may have an explanation as to why the Bucs were hesitant to give Mayfield a longer deal.

Josh Queipo of Pewter Report wrote a fantastic article about the matter, and he believes a little-known rule in the NFL's Collective Bargaining Agreement may have played a part in Tampa's offer.

The CBA stipulates that future guaranteed money must be set aside in an escrow account. According to Queipo, and based on what we know about the Bucs' offer, that means the Glazer family would have had to set aside around $140 million right away to cover the future guarantees in Mayfield's would-be extension.

"The Collective Bargaining Agreement calls for teams to ensure that fully guaranteed money in future years is set aside in an escrow account immediately upon execution of the guarantees. This account has to hold the club’s future fully guaranteed commitments to players, less $15 million. In the case of Baker Mayfield, assuming the two year, $100+ million offer reported by Jeremy Fowler of ESPN was close to, if not fully guaranteed, then the team would essentially have to set aside $140 million or more – immediately. That would be his current salary for 2026 plus the 2027 and 2028 guaranteed salaries."

As Queipo notes, that's a lot of money for the Glazers to no longer be able to access, and it may be the main reason as to why they didn't want to commit more to a player who is already 31 years old. Many of the QBs that Mayfield wants to be paid similarly to are much younger, making it less of a risk for their team owners to set aside nine-figures in future guarantees.

It seems like a rule that was designed to protect players may actually be getting used against them in contract negotiations.

Tampa has never given out a contract extension that would require them to fund the escrow account more than two years into the future.

Queipo believes the CBA rule is a major reason why the Bucs wouldn't offer a longer contract extension. It is a great theory that makes an awful lot of sense.

Mayfield, in his own words, was upset by the lack of any "long-term lock-in" from the Bucs. Now that we may know why Tampa didn't want to offer a longer extension, it adds doubt to whether the team and Mayfield will be able to come to terms on a new contract. If the Glazers wouldn't offer more than two years now, why would they in the future? If Mayfield wouldn't accept a shorter extension now, why would he in the future?

Kudos to Queipo for uncovering what may be the biggest factor behind Tampa's negotiating strategy.

Hopefully, the Bucs and Mayfield will be able to find a resolution that makes both sides happy and comfortable.

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