As the Atlanta Falcons prepare to take on the Bucs this weekend, it's fairly obvious what the biggest storyline from this game is. This will mark the first matchup between Baker Mayfield and Kevin Stefanski since Week 1 of the 2022 season, and as we all know, this one comes with a history.
For all the talk about the implications this matchup will have on the NFC South standings, you drama between these two without a bowl of popcorn. There is a lot of history here and just as much bad blood dating back to their time together in Cleveland, where things were great until they weren't.
In their first season together in 2020, the Browns went 11-5 and won their first playoff game since 1994, but they regressed the next year (despite Baker playing through injury), so Browns GM Andrew Berry struck a blockbuster deal for Deshaun Watson and called it quits on the former No, 1 pick, which saw their working relationship sour.
When the Falcons hired Stefanski, Mayfield took to Twitter to sound off with some brutal criticisms of his former coach, even revealing that the two-time Coach of the Year never called him after he was traded. and according to Baker, the two haven't spoken since 2021: before he was dealt to Carolina--but at least he had nice things to say about this Atlanta defense.
Kevin Stefanski can win the breakup over Baker Mayfield if the Falcons beat the Bucs in Week 8
But while Baker is holding a grudge against the coach who helped him break out, Stefanski is taking a different approach Week 8. He's no-nonsense and doesn't do all this drama, so while speaking to reporters on Wednesday, he had nothing but good things to say about his former quarterback.
"He's a playmaker," Stefanski said. "No play is ever over. He's just going to constantly make plays down the field. He can run. He's extremely talented."
For starters, this goes to show you how much class Stefanski has compared to Baker Mayfield, who publicly admitted he's fine not having a relationship with him, but that doesn't mean he doesn't want to win this game (or this messy public breakup). He'd rather take the high road and let Sunday's result do the talking, as there is no reason to entertain this distraction after such a pivotal victory.
For as much as a team will play for the 53 guys on the roster, they want to play for the coaching staff just as much--and you know this game has extra importance for the Falcons because of the importance it has on Kevin Stefanski, which is how you know you hired the right head coach.
The Dirty Birds always want to beat the Bucs because they're a division rival, and the 31-year-old has become something of a thorn in their side these last four seasons. But he's also not 100% healthy, as he just returned last week from a dislocated thumb and only threw 11 passes in a blowout win, so if Atlanta wants to win, it'll be by stopping the run and forcing Zac Robinson to let him air it out.
Baker Mayfield is known to be a quarterback who plays with a chip on his shoulder against his former teams, so you know both he and Kevin Stefanski want to get the better of each other in this matchup because that's what competitors do, but that disrespect won't be tolerated on the field.
This revenge game definitely still has a bit of bad blood involved (at least on one side), so regardless of how real their beef is, there's nothing No. 6 can say or do that won't get the Falcons fired up and take advantage of the chance to get back to .500 this weekend--but it'll be a hard-fought matchup.
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