'Stressed out' Baker Mayfield watching Falcons end Buccaneers playoff hopes became a Week 18 meme

Baker Mayfield had no more control over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' playoff destiny Sunday than an NFL fan.

The quarterback, who guided the Buccaneers to a 16-14 win over the Carolina Panthers Saturday that kept Tampa Bay's playoff hopes alive, could only watch as Sunday's Atlanta Falcons vs. New Orleans Saints matchup decided the NFC South race.

Clips of Mayfield watching the game, hoping for a Saints win, went around social media on Sunday — but in the end, Tampa Bay's playoff hopes were shut out by a Falcons victory.

Here's a look at Baker Mayfield's reaction to the Falcons vs. Saints matchup that decided the NFC South race between the Buccaneers and Panthers.

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Watch Baker Mayfield see playoff hopes disappear

With the Buccaneers' regular season ending Saturday with their win over the Panthers, their playoff hopes rested in the outcome of the Falcons-Saints game. So, that left Mayfield, fresh off a 26-touchdown season, with nothing to do but watch his TV as his team's playoff hopes hung up in the air.

His wife, Emily Mayfield, shared a live look-in on her Instagram story, showing the quarterback locked into Falcons vs. Saints.

"Watching Baker watch football as a 'fan' is hilarious," she wrote. "Haven't seen him this stressed in a minute."

Baker Mayfield is locked in to Saints-Falcons 😅

(via Emily Mayfield/IG) pic.twitter.com/rGbdFRWh8l

— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) January 4, 2026

Emily Mayfield also showed a shot of Baker sitting on a table, hoping for a Falcons win:

Baker Mayfield & the Bucs have been ELIMINATED from playoff contention

Live Baker Reaction via Emily Mayfield: pic.twitter.com/utCg8ryOmn

— Bussin' With The Boys (@BussinWTB) January 4, 2026

How Buccaneers missed NFL playoffs

Had the Buccaneers won another game at any point this season, they'd be in the playoffs. But that isn't how things turned out — entering Week 18, Tampa Bay had a tough path to the division title, competing with Carolina. Still, the Bucs did their job.

On Saturday, the Buccaneers' playoff hopes were kept alive when they beat their NFC South competitors, the Panthers, 16-14. That win meant both teams would finish the regular season at 8-9, so tiebreakers would settle which team won the division. The Falcons were not in the race for the NFC South entering Week 18 despite ultimately finishing with the same 8-9 record.

It was Carolina that won the three-way tiebreaker for the NFC South. The head-to-head tiebreakers had the Panthers going 2-0 against the Falcons and 1-1 against the Buccaneers, while Tampa Bay was 1-1 against Atlanta and 1-1 against Carolina. So, the Panthers' 3-1 record in the tiebreaker bested the Buccaneers' 2-2 record.

Had the Saints beat the Falcons on Sunday, however, the Buccaneers would have been in the playoffs as the NFC South champion and winner of a two-way tiebreaker.

MORE: Everything to know about Panthers making playoffs over Buccaneers

NFL playoff picture

Here's an updated look at the NFL playoff picture through finished Week 18 games.

AFC playoff picture

Still in the hunt: Ravens (8-8)

NFC playoff picture