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Baker Mayfield has not exactly gotten off on the right foot in 2019.
The much-ballyhooed second-year quarterback has been brutal over the first five weeks of the season, throwing for 1,247 yards, four touchdowns and eight interceptions while completing just 55.9 percent of his passes and posting a passer rating of 68.5.
Most recently, during the Cleveland Browns' Monday night loss to the San Francisco 49ers, Mayfield went 8-for-22 with 100 yards and a couple of picks.
Given how Mayfield set the single-season rookie record with 27 touchdown passes a year ago and entered the 2019 campaign with endless weapons in the aerial attack, his lackluster performance has bewildered Browns fans and Fantasy Football owners everywhere.
So, can Mayfield turn his season around and actually become the Fantasy Football stud many felt he would be coming into the season?
It's anyone's guess at this point, as a legitimate argument can be made that Mayfield is yet to have a great game this year. He was solid in Week 4 against the Baltimore Ravens, throwing for 342 yards, a touchdown and an interception, but otherwise, he has been pedestrian, at best.
The one potential saving grace of Mayfield is the Browns' schedule over the second half of the season.
Cleveland's slate over the first half has been brutal, to say the least, as the Browns have played the Titans, Jets, Rams, Ravens and 49ers. Outside of the Jets, those are some pretty tough opponents, and it's about to get worse over Cleveland's next two games, as it will battle the Seahawks next Sunday before heading into its bye week. Then, the Browns will head to Foxborough to take on the Patriots, a team that has had, by far, the best defense in the NFL over the first five weeks.
But after that, things get a bit easier, as Cleveland will have to play both the Steelers and Bengals twice and will also have matchups with the Broncos, Dolphins and Cardinals.
So, if Mayfield is going to salvage his season, that might be the time he does it.
Now, the Browns' playoff hopes are an entirely different issue, because they are facing an uphill climb, but as for Mayfield potentially turning things around as a viable Fantasy play? It's possible.
Remember: Cleveland will be getting Kareem Hunt in the lineup midseason, and tight end David Njoku will likely be back from his wrist injury at some point, so those are two more weapons Mayfield will have at his disposal.
Plus, Antonio Callaway just came back from a suspension, so that's even more receiver depth behind Odell Beckham Jr., Jarvis Landry and Rashard Higgins.
Mayfield has more than enough weapons, and with the schedule easing up in a few weeks, he could end up having a big second half.
But it is concerning that the 24-year-old has not even resembled the signal-caller that won the Offensive Rookie of the Year award last season, and that porous offensive line that has surrendered almost endless pressure on Mayfield is also a problem.
I wouldn't put that many eggs in Mayfield's basket, as we are five weeks into the season and he has not shown any signs of coming out of his slump, but with some shoddy defenses on the horizon, he could end up looking much better in the latter half of 2019.
