NFL Panic Meter: With Baker Mayfield out, Bucs' backup plan at QB might wreck their season

When the Tampa Bay Buccaneers decided that undrafted rookie Jalon Daniels had earned their backup quarterback job in August, they knew the risk involved.

Daniels was the first undrafted rookie in Buccaneers history to start the season as the team's primary backup quarterback. It was an unusual decision, but one the Bucs thought was right after training camp and a solid preseason. Daniels, who played six college seasons at Kansas, completed 27-of-44 passes for 239 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions with 37 yards and a touchdown on the ground in three preseason games.

The Buccaneers made that decision presumably hoping Daniels wouldn't be needed this season. Then, suddenly, he was.

Baker Mayfield dislocated his thumb late in the Buccaneers' loss to the Minnesota Vikings and coach Todd Bowles told WFLA he will miss "a minimum of three weeks." Bowles said Daniels will be the starter on Sunday against the Green Bay Packers .

It's obviously a very scary stretch coming up for the Buccaneers. They are 0-3 after a collapse in the second half of last season. They're 2-10 in their last 12 games. If Mayfield misses three games and the Bucs lose all three with Daniels (vs. Packers, at Cowboys , vs. Steelers ), they'll be 0-6 and 2-13 in their last 15. Bowles is already on the hot seat and an 0-6 start would be bad for him. It might also be bad for general manager Jason Licht, who put together the roster and didn't have a better backup quarterback plan than an undrafted rookie who was good but far from great at Kansas.

It's not inconceivable that Daniels could keep the Buccaneers afloat, though. The Pittsburgh Steelers won the first three starts of undrafted rookie Devlin "Duck" Hodges' career in 2019, though they lost the next three and Hodges didn't play in the NFL after that season. Tommy DeVito played well as an undrafted rookie for the 2023 New York Giants , they won three of his six starts and now he's the primary backup for the Patriots . Tyson Bagent got four starts as an undrafted rookie for the 2023 Bears , they went 2-2 and he's now their established backup.

So perhaps the idea of an 0-3 team having to start an undrafted rookie for a few weeks isn't as bad as it sounds. But it is a tough ask. And it was a risky proposition when the Buccaneers decided on it.

"You can go back and forth with the experience argument, but we'd rather have a very talented, prepared, inexperienced quarterback than going with experience just for the sake of saying the guy's experienced," Licht said via the team's site. "Like all rookie quarterbacks, whether you're the No. 1 overall pick or undrafted, there's going to be a learning curve, there's going to be ups and downs. But we feel good about where he's at, his trajectory, and we're excited."

We'll see if the Buccaneers can get through the next few games without Mayfield. If it goes terribly bad, there will be some justified consternation around the Buccaneers' offices.

Panic meter: Unless Daniels has a surprising run, this could get very ugly.

Maye hurt his shoulder in last season's AFC championship game, and it should be healed by now. But Maye has been so bad to start this season, there's some concern it's lingering.

And Maye's strange answers didn't exactly put the speculation to rest. He dodged the first question about his shoulder.

"I don't think that has anything to do with executing and playing better football and realizing that's the biggest thing that contributes to winning," Maye told WEEI, according to Doug Kyed of the Boston Herald .

Maye was asked a follow-up question and he gave the answer that most players give when they're playing through injury.

"Any time I'm out there, and I'm in uniform on the field, I'm gonna play 100% and give it my all," Maye said, via Kyed. "That's kind of what I have to say."

That is far from denying his shoulder is injured, when he had multiple opportunities to do so. At this point, an injury is the only logical way to explain how Maye can go from almost winning MVP last season to being one of the worst quarterbacks in the NFL through three games this season. It's worth monitoring now.

Panic meter: Maye's play is already alarming, and an injury possibility is now a curious part of that.

Bengals ' defense reverts to previous form

Through two weeks of the NFL season, one of the fun stories was the improvement of the Cincinnati Bengals' defense. After a few years being near the bottom of the league, it looked like the addition of Dexter Lawrence II and others might have turned things around during a 2-0 start.

Then the Steelers, who had scored one touchdown in two games before Sunday, dropped 30 points on the Bengals. Jaylen Warren ran all over them. Aaron Rodgers , at age 42, had nearly 300 yards passing. It looked like the past few seasons, when a leaky defense was the main reason the Bengals kept missing the playoffs. Everyone in Cincinnati would be in trouble if the Bengals miss the playoffs for a fourth straight season in Joe Burrow 's prime.

Panic meter: Cincinnati is better on defense, but maybe not as much as hoped.

Take any quarterback's No. 1 receiver away and his production will suffer. Stroud's has plummeted without Nico Collins .

That's not good news for Stroud. Houston scored six points without Collins in Week 2, then on Sunday, the Texans had seven points and 93 yards through three quarters against a Colts defense that was the worst in the NFL through two weeks. The Texans rallied a bit in the fourth quarter but lost 19-17 to fall to 0-3.

As Yahoo Sports' Jay Busbee wrote , it's not good for Stroud in a big season for his future. The Texans have to make a decision, whether to sign him to a big extension or not. ESPN's Jeremy Fowler wrote before the season started that the Texans were "prepared" to put Stroud in the $50 million per season club. One has to wonder if that offer is still on the table, or if there would be any offer at all if the Texans' season goes completely sour.

Panic meter: Houston has to be wondering if they have to start over at QB.

Through two games Achane had 38 touches. He was probably going to continue to get more, because the Dolphins are thin on offense. That's not an option anymore after Achane tore his ACL, ending his season .

The Dolphins are 31st in points scored and 26th in yardage gained, and that was with Achane for two full games. It will not get better without Achane, one of the most explosive players in the NFL. The Dolphins' list of skill-position players looks like something you'd see in the third preseason game. Good luck to QB Malik Willis .

Panic meter: There are going to be some ugly games for the Dolphins' offense.

The Rams' two losses are ugly. No way around that. In the first one, they were dominated in Australia by the 49ers . Even if we blame jet lag, they didn't play well. Then on Sunday, they blew a 16-0 halftime lead, giving up 30 points in the second half of a loss to the Denver Broncos . They're 1-2, two games (and the tiebreaker, for now) behind the 49ers in the NFC West.

What the Rams really need is health. Puka Nacua missed his second straight game with a groin injury and surgery isn't completely off the table, according to a report from ESPN . Myles Garrett is still out. Either of those players would have made a difference on Sunday, especially Garrett as the Rams couldn't get a stop (or a correct call on what was not a defensive pass interference ).

It has been three games. The Rams have played two of them without two of the NFL's best players. The Broncos loss came after the Rams outgained Denver by 225 yards. Don't let the record fool you.

Panic meter: Not much at all, assuming Nacua and Garrett get healthy.