When the Cleveland Browns took Baker Mayfield first overall, some around the NFL thought their never-ending pursuit of a franchise QB was finally over. Four years later, that’s clearly not the case.
Mayfield led the Browns to the playoffs and looked poised to break out once and for all. Then, multiple injuries, a questionable offensive gameplan, and a lack of confidence forced a big regression.
He was often scapegoated and blamed for the team’s struggles, with Odell Beckham Jr’s father even exposing him on a video. Now, they traded for Deshaun Watson and made it clear that he’s no longer a part of their plans for the future.
NFL News: Baker Mayfield’s Camp Thinks The Cleveland Browns Sabotaged Him
Mayfield isn’t completely innocent, either. His character issues will not be ignored. Then again, his camp reached a point where they felt like Kevin Stefanski and the Browns were deliberately trying to make him look bad, even allowing him to be sacked 9 times in a primetime MNF game:
“According to multiple sources, those close to Mayfield — who to that point had missed one game because of his shoulder injury — wondered at the time if the Browns were trying to make Mayfield look as hapless as possible in prime time, to potentially pave the way for the franchise to more easily explain why it might be moving on from him in the offseason,” reported Jake Trotter of ESPN.
The Browns put rookie tackleJames Hudson on T.J. Watt and the outcome was predictable. Mayfield was already pretty banged up after suffering an injury on his non-throwing shoulder, so there was only something he could do.
“Mayfield had grown frustrated with his situation in Cleveland over the years, according to multiple sources,” Trotter added. “He was the fourth quarterback in league history to play for four different head coaches in his first three seasons.”
“The Browns picked up the fifth-year option on Mayfield’s contract on April 23, 2021, but even after the playoff win, the team refrained from engaging Mayfield’s camp on extension talks last offseason, according to multiple sources,” Trotter continued. “It was a signal to Mayfield that the team was unsure he was their long-term answer at quarterback.”
Mayfield failed to step up and prove capable of leading a franchise but he was never put in a position to succeed, either. Hopefully, he’ll get another opportunity somewhere else and this time, if he fails, it’ll be on him.
