Tampa Bay Buccaneers 32, Philadelphia Eagles 9
Q. Baker, the fans tonight were all out at the stadium. At the end of the first quarter, you were trying to pump them up. Can you just speak to how important it was that everyone came out here in Tampa Bay?
BAKER MAYFIELD: Yeah. Big difference? Tonight's game compared to the first one with how many Eagles fans were here tonight. Tampa showed up, so we appreciate that. Unfortunately it was the last one here, so, but it was electric. We could feel the energy and we fed off that.
Q. Baker, big touchdown passes to Moore, Palmer. I now you got the ball eventually to Chris for a touchdown, and Mike, but what does it say about those guys stepping up and all the catches Cade Otton made as well.
BAKER MAYFIELD: Big time. You know, they were running a couple coverages where they were double-teaming Mike and Chris at the same time, so those guys had a lot of one-on-ones and took advantage of their opportunities, but, yeah, they played amazing. Obviously pretty simple plays, they did the rest. That's always good as a quarterback just to be able to give it to them. An easy throw and they do the rest, so happy for those guys.
Q. How gratifying was it for you to be able to go out there and have a moment like this, such a big moment, punctuating what's already been a terrific season for you personally and to do it against a team that beat you in week three?
BAKER MAYFIELD: Yeah, I said immediately after the game, we worked extremely hard to get a chance to be in the playoffs and we just wanted an opportunity and our guys came out and played really, really well. Special teams, defense, once again, Chase is a stud. Defense played lights out. Yeah, we should have had a lot more points on offense, but we did just enough to get the win tonight and, yeah, we're happy but still got more to go.
Q. Year one with you with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. You guys won the division. You come in here a home underdog, take their business. How are you feeling right now following a big one like this and knowing you advance to the divisional round against the Lions next week?
BAKER MAYFIELD: Just proud of our guys. Proud of everybody in the building to stick together like we did the second half of the year and to get to this spot, to keep fighting and stick together and don't listen to the outside noise. Just trust the people next to you.
Q. Was it easier to throw the ball physically today?
BAKER MAYFIELD: Yeah, it felt a lot better today.
Q. Take us through your injuries and what you had to do to get ready for tonight and how they may or may not have affected anything.
BAKER MAYFIELD: Just a lot more rehab and treatment. Got an unbelievable physiotherapist that's been flying in every week for six years now, so he came twice this week and get to see him again tomorrow. Just, all the -- your body is your product and that's like the one job you have to do is to get ready physically to be able to play, so everybody in the locker room at this point in the year. It's a long season. Everybody's fighting some sort of injury and everybody did the best they could to prepare.
Q. The Eagles have a really physical front, and once again, the offensive line kind of shut everything down in the fourth quarter and dominated. Can you speak to, again, how they're able to just come up big at the end of games?
BAKER MAYFIELD: I'm so proud of our big guys. From everybody talking about what they were going to be compared to what they really are, just proud of those guys. They've continued to improve as the year's gone on. They stuck together and tonight showed that. That's not an easy front to go up against, and they played really well.
Q. Baker, this is one of those games where you get the better of the Eagles the second time around. Now you're playing the Lions next week. Are you -- obviously you're excited to still be in the playoffs, to get another shot at a team that's beat you. What does that mean?
BAKER MAYFIELD: When I just immediately think back about the Lions game, a lot of missed throws by me. I think we had a lot of stuff there. We just didn't play our best game offensively, and so we'll look back at the tape once we get into the game plan stuff, but we're very different than we were early on in the year and that's something to be proud of, that we've continued to improve and we haven't reinvented the wheel. We just stuck with it and just gotten better at the little things.
Q. Trey, the rookie. Can you speak to just his development over the entire year?
BAKER MAYFIELD: Yeah, obviously the guy can roll, so just him being able to play fast, and for rookies, you don't want to cloud their heads with too much to learn, but you're able to get a guy that he can learn the system and play to his top speed, it just goes to show, I mean, he showed tonight. Those guys got to be ready for their one-on-ones because just because we have Chris and Mike and so everybody took care of that.
BAKER MAYFIELD: You guys wouldn't have been able to get to this point going on that run at the end of the season without having faith in each other. Just can you speak to the role that that's played and you guys have bounced back to where you are now.
BAKER MAYFIELD: We have a great locker room, great staff that, I mean, just the leadership overall. We lean on each other. We trust each other. Just doing your job and knowing that the guy next to you is going to do his. That's accountability for yourself and for your teammates and it's just amazing to see the growth this team has had in the second half of the year.
Q. How does this playoff win compare to your first one?
BAKER MAYFIELD: It's pretty good.
(Laughter)
Q. Is it even sweeter considering the journey you were on this past year?
BAKER MAYFIELD: Yeah, I don't like to directly compare, but, yeah, obviously the ups and downs that I've been through in the last few years, this one's great, but like I said earlier, our sights are set for bigger goals, so on to the next one.
Q. Todd said you guys were embracing this underdog role. Obviously you kind of majored in that in your career. Do you just thrive in this position? Do you just love it?
BAKER MAYFIELD: Yeah, there's something about whether it's you're an underdog or a road game, just having your backs against the wall and knowing it's just your team versus everybody else when you're counted out and it's always fun to be in that role. Obviously I'm pretty comfortable in it, but our team has completely embraced that throughout the year.
Q. Dave Canales' play calling tonight, just seemed like he was in such a rhythm and in his zone early on. Did you feel it?
BAKER MAYFIELD: Yeah. You could feel it. And it comes down to guys just executing, too. Like we talked about, when we went on a little lull midseason, we just weren't doing little things right, and that makes it really tough on a play caller, so. Dave was feeling it tonight and our guys took advantage of it.
Q. Baker, there's a report about what you had to do to get ready to play with the ribs. You stretched them to promote healing. Can you talk about --
BAKER MAYFIELD: I don't know the science. I just let him do the work.
(Laughter)
Q. Whatever he does do, right?
BAKER MAYFIELD: Yeah, glutton for punishment and pain.
(Laughter)
Q. How painful is it when he has to do that?
BAKER MAYFIELD: It's not fun, but it's worth it.
Q. Take us through the last touchdown pass, because Philadelphia, they put some pressure on you and desperately you throw the pass.
BAKER MAYFIELD: We talked about it. Had one play call in the huddle and just gave the guys the heads-up, they might bring coverage zero, and they did. Got the alert, changed the protection, changed the concept and Chris did a really, really good job of when it's cover zero, those guys are just trying to play at a certain point and when Chris just sticks his foot in the ground and starts to run, he was right on the landmark and Dave and Brad always talk about when it's cover zero, just look up for the ball and he did. I was -- it wasn't the best ball, but he caught it. So 14's down there somewhere.
MODERATOR: Okay thank you, folks.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports