Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield came forward to clear the air regarding his relationship with his former coach, Kevin Stefanski. After six seasons, he was fired by the Cleveland Browns following a disappointing 5-12 campaign.

He was then named as the new coach of the Atlanta Falcons and is set to face Mayfield and the Buccaneers as division rivals. During an interview with Sports Illustrated on Saturday, the two-time Pro Bowler clarified rumors and reports about still having a strained relationship with his former coach.

“There’s stuff there, but it’s not like it’s beef,” Mayfield said (h/tNBCSports). “We’ve worked together, anytime you know somebody, you want to beat them whether it’s a good or bad relationship.

“Not a revenge game of a sense of Atlanta, but we lost the division for the first time since four or five years so, any divisional game will be a revenge game, I guess.”

Looking to predict NFL playoff Scenarios? Try our NFL Playoff Predictor for real-time simulations and stay ahead of the game!

Last month, Baker Mayfield made headlines after his tweet calling out Kevin Stefanski. It started when Falcons beat writer D.Orlando wrote that the coach had a difficult time in Cleveland because of a failing quarterback room. He named Mayfield as an example.

The Bucs quarterback responded by talking about his stint with the Browns and ultimately getting traded. He then expressed his excitement about going against Stefanski and the Falcons as divisional rivals.

“Failed is quite the reach pal. Still waiting on a text/call from him after I got shipped off like a piece of garbage. Can’t wait to see you twice a year, Coach.”

The Browns drafted Mayfield with the first overall pick in 2018. He spent four seasons with them and recorded 14,125 yards and 92 TDs passing. In 2022, he was traded to the Panthers. Shortly after, he was released and signed with the Rams for the remainder of the 2022 season.

In 2023, Mayfield agreed to a one-year, $4 million deal with the Buccaneers. After his debut campaign, they provided the quarterback with a three-year extension worth up to $100 million in 2024.

Kevin Stefanski gets honest about his relationship with Baker Mayfield

A few days after getting called out by Baker Mayfield, Kevin Stefanski broke his silence on the situation.

During his introductory press conference as the Falcons coach last month, he clarified that there was no bad blood between him and the Buccaneers quarterback.

“Baker’s somebody that I have a ton of respect for as a player and a person,” Stefanski said. “I love rivalries in sports and obviously, Buccaners-Falcons have a great rivalry.

“It’s something I’m excited about. But I would not get into the specifics of those type of things, other than say I have a ton of respect for Baker as a player, a person, that’s a great team with a great player.”

During the 2025 season, Baker Mayfield and the Bucs finished second in the NFC South with an 8-9 record, failing to qualify for the playoffs. He recorded 3,693 yards and 26 TDs passing.