Baker Mayfield Is “Boiling Over” Ahead of Saints Showdown – YaYa Diaby Spills the Harsh Truth

TAMPA – Two years have passed, but the wound still bleeds.

Every time the word “Saints” comes up, Baker Mayfield’s eyes go dark. This isn’t the normal divisional dislike – this is personal hatred, forged on that December afternoon in 2023 when Nathan Shepherd drove his knee into Baker’s ribs and Tyrann Mathieu deliberately stepped on his already-torn ankle. The result? The Bucs nearly lost the NFC South crown because of a humiliating 6–9 defeat.

“I feel it every single day,” outside linebacker YaYa Diaby told local reporters on Wednesday, his eyes blazing. “Every time Baker walks into the meeting room, he brings up those dirty hits. He doesn’t need anyone to remind him – he reminds himself. And when he does, everybody hears the fire in his voice.”

Diaby isn’t exaggerating. Several players in the locker room say Mayfield still keeps the clip of those two late hits on his personal iPad – replaying them over and over every time the Bucs prepare for the Saints. “He told us: ‘This isn’t football. This is personal,’” a team source told ESPN. “Baker doesn’t forget, and he doesn’t forgive. He’s just waiting for the day he gets to answer back on the field.”

This Sunday’s game at Caesars Superdome will be Mayfield’s fifth meeting with the Saints since the incident. His record against New Orleans since 2023? 3–1, 9 TDs, 1 INT, and an average of 28 points per game for Tampa Bay. But this time feels different. With the Bucs sitting at 6–6 and desperately needing a win to stay alive in the playoff race, Mayfield has turned the entire week into his own personal crusade.

“He hates them more than I hate getting held without a flag,” Diaby said with a booming laugh – though his eyes stayed deadly serious. “I’ve never seen Baker this ‘on fire.’ He’s yelling in meetings, slamming tables, telling us: ‘We’re not just playing football – we’re collecting a debt.’ I believe him 100%. That Superdome is about to be hotter than hell.”

While the Saints limp in with a shredded offense after injuries to Derek Carr and Chris Olave, Mayfield enters with his arsenal fully loaded: Mike Evans and Jalen McMillan returning, Bucky Irving healthy, and a red-hot YaYa Diaby leading the team in sacks. All they needed was a final spark – and that spark has been burning for 730 days.

On Sunday, the stage is set for the perfect revenge.

Baker Mayfield doesn’t just want to win. He wants the Saints to remember the price of playing dirty with him.

And according to YaYa Diaby, the entire city of Tampa Bay is marching into that battle with him – smiling wide, hearts on fire.