Jets coach fires back at Baker Mayfield’s cheap shot with perfect response

The New York Jets’ Week 3 matchup with the Buccaneers came with a little extra heat thanks to a storyline that had nothing to do with the team's current season.

Shortly after Tampa Bay's 29-27 victory this past Sunday, Bucs quarterback Baker Mayfield told reporters the game was “personal” for him because he hadn’t forgotten how things ended in Carolina back in 2022.

At the center of it all was Steve Wilks, now the Jets’ defensive coordinator, who took over as the Panthers’ interim head coach that year after Matt Rhule was fired. Mayfield implied that Wilks had cut ties with him during that turbulent season, framing last week as a chance to prove something against his old coach.

But when asked about Mayfield’s comments on Friday, Wilks made it clear he never saw the situation that way. And in the process, he delivered the sharpest response of the week.

"I don’t think an interim coach has much say over personnel. If that were the case, I wouldn’t have gotten rid of our best player, Christian McCaffrey."

Steve WIlks

Jets DC Steve Wilks fires back at Baker Mayfield after postgame cheap shot

Mayfield’s comments came in the aftermath of Tampa Bay’s thrilling 29-27 victory over the Jets, a game decided by kicker Chase McLaughlin’s walk-off field goal. The Bucs quarterback had reason to be fired up — he threw for 233 yards and a touchdown, leading a late scoring drive to seal the win.

Mayfield went 1-5 as Carolina’s starter under Wilks before being released and landing with the Los Angeles Rams, where he finished out the year. That history appeared to resurface this past weekend, with Mayfield framing the Jets-Bucs game as a chance to prove something against the coach he believed had moved on without him.

Wilks, though, pushed back on that narrative when asked about it. He made it clear that interim coaches don’t control roster moves, distancing himself from the decision to cut Mayfield in the first place.

And in doing so, he delivered a line that simultaneously defended his record and undercut Mayfield’s gripe. If Wilks was the one calling the shots, he claims the Panthers would have never traded Christian McCaffrey — a valid clap back, indeed.

Both the Jets and Buccaneers will be glad to move forward, especially as the former looks ahead to their Week 4 clash with the Miami Dolphins on Monday Night Football.

It's a bit dramatic to call that a must-win game, but a win in primetime over a division rival would certainly go a long way toward easing the fan base's concerns over the team's 0-3 start.

Wilks knows that his Jets defense needs to perform better than it has over the first three weeks of the season, especially against a Miami offense that doesn't lack playmakers.

As for Mayfield, the Buccaneers quarterback may have gotten the last laugh on the field, but Wilks made sure he didn’t off it. Another moral victory, I suppose.

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