Baker Mayfield and the Cleveland Browns have gone their separate ways after the AFC North franchise shipped the former Oklahoma Sooners gunslinger to the Carolina Panthers. Even with all the uncertainty surrounding the situation of Deshaun Watson, the Browns were always expected to end their relationship with Mayfield, as it became apparent that the two sides were not seeing eye to eye.
According to Jason Lloyd of The Athletic, the decision to trade Mayfield was significantly influenced by their perception that he was simply not the quarterback who would make them a perennial Super Bowl contender.
To be clear, this wasn’t a power struggle between coach and quarterback. The Browns never offered Mayfield an extension partly because they had four years of evidence that he was good, but not good enough. I’ve spoken to members of the organization who fully believe Mayfield can still have a fine career when he’s healthy and finds his swagger again. The Browns had an opportunity to get someone better and they took it.
Mayfield had an up-and-down tenure with the Browns. Sure there were lows, but it can't also be denied that he was the quarterback who took Cleveland to its first-ever appearance in the NFL Playoffs in nearly two decades. However, after that memorable 2020 NFL season wherein they went 11-5, the Browns took a step back and finished the 2021 NFL campaign with just an 8-9 record — good for just third in the dog-eat-dog world of the AFC North — despite a stellar cast both on offense and defense.
In four seasons with the Browns, Mayfield collected 14,125 passing yards on 61.6 completion percentage, 92 passing touchdowns, and 56 interceptions.
The Panthers are not viewed as a Super Bowl contender in the 2022 NFL season and having Baker Mayfield barely moves the needle for Matt Rhule's team, but Mayfield does offer some intrigue, if only because it's interesting to see how he would adjust in a new environment.
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