Analyst compares Buccaneers' Baker Mayfield to Seahawks' Geno Smith

Former NFL quarterback and current ESPN analyst Dan Orlovsky recently suggested that new Tampa Bay Buccaneers starter Baker Mayfield can thrive playing under offensive coordinator Dave Canales similarly to how Geno Smith of the Seattle Seahawks became a revelation last season while working with Canales. 

"This is how [Mayfield] would have to do it," Orlovsky explained during an on-air appearance, per the JoeBucsFan website. "No. 1, and this is what Geno did great last year; take the free and easy completions that this offense is going to build in. That’s different than play-action. The bootleg game, to his right and to his left, getting his hips flipped. And No. 3, he’s got to own the play-action game." 

As shared by ESPN stats, Smith finished the 2022 regular season leading the entire NFL among eligible players with a 69.8% completion percentage. The 32-year-old was tied for sixth among qualified players with a 60.8 adjusted QBR, fourth with 30 passing touchdowns and eighth with 4,282 passing yards. Smith ultimately earned Associated Press Comeback Player of the Year Award honors, and he also guided the Seahawks to a playoff berth. 

Those criticizing Canales and company for going with Mayfield over 2021 second-round draft pick Kyle Trask as the club's Week 1 starter often point out that Mayfield has thrown more interceptions than any other quarterback since the beginning of the 2018 season. Orlovsky thinks Mayfield can avoid such turnovers by taking what's in front of him more often than not. 

"That is a foundational aspect of this offense," Orlovsky continued. "You gotta be great with the easy ones, own the movement game and master play-action."