Sports
Baker Mayfield will sit again as rookie Jalon Daniels starts for the Bucs against Aaron Rodgers and the Steelers
Baker Mayfield's dislocated right thumb is not ready so undrafted rookie Jalon Daniels makes his second straight start as 1-4 Tampa Bay hosts Pittsburgh.
Tampa Bay will have to wait a little longer for its starting quarterback.
Baker Mayfield will miss Sunday's home game against the Pittsburgh Steelers as he recovers from a dislocated right thumb. Offensive coordinator Zac Robinson confirmed the news on Thursday after Mayfield sat out practice on Wednesday and Thursday.
Not quite ready
Mayfield was hoping to test the thumb by throwing this week to see if he could grip the ball and run the offense. Robinson said it has not reached that point yet.
"He's doing everything he can," Robinson said. "I know he wanted to play in this game so badly." He added that the timing on these things is hard to predict and "it's just not quite ready."
Mayfield got hurt against the Minnesota Vikings on Sept. 27 and was first expected to miss three to six weeks. Head coach Todd Bowles said earlier in the week that Mayfield would only come back when he was 100%.
Daniels gets another shot
Undrafted rookie Jalon Daniels will make his second straight start. The former Kansas quarterback went 19 of 25 for 189 yards and a touchdown in last week's 24-16 win in Dallas, which gave the Bucs their first victory of the season. Sunday will be his first start in front of the home crowd at Raymond James Stadium.
Across the field will be 42-year-old Aaron Rodgers, who has said this is his final season.
Why it matters
The Bucs are 1-4 and have little room for error. A win would get them to 2-4 with a road division game at Carolina coming up. The Bucs hope to have Mayfield back for that one.
