Surprise, surprise, the Cleveland Browns don't like their quarterback, Baker Mayfield, taking hits, like he's done over the last two weeks. Against the Tennessee Titans and New York Jets, Mayfield has taken eight sacks. That's not going to cut it.
“I have to do a better job of getting the ball out of Baker’s hands quicker,” said Browns head coach Freddie Kitchens after Monday night's win, via Daryl Ruiter of 92.3 The Fan.
So, Freddie, how are you going to limit the number of hits taken on Mayfield?
“We need to get the ball out of his hands quicker. He is taking too many hits. I do not like my quarterback to take hits. I need to get the ball out of his hands quicker,” says Kitchens.
Getting the ball out quickly will help Mayfield take fewer hits. An instance of him not doing so was in the fourth quarter; on third and eight, Mayfield looked downfield, didn't see anything, pump-faked twice, ran around, then took another hit. Kitchen explains that situation by saying:
“In that situation, you are either going to hand the ball off and get hit in the backfield three or four yards or you take advantage of what they are giving you. When they cover it, you just protect yourself. I do not need him out there taking unnecessary shots.”
While Mayfield could speed up his decision making, his offensive line isn't doing him any favors. Cleveland and their quarterback is feeling the repercussions of not bolstering the unit over the offseason and trading away their starting right guard, Kevin Zeitler, to the New York Giants.
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