As Baker Mayfield wrote in pain during Sunday’s loss to the Arizona Cardinals to the Cleveland Browns, re-injuring his previously displaced left shoulder, the quarterback found himself in the middle of another unfortunate turn in a season, which has not yet come to the fore. Either he or his team.
This was believed to be the season the fourth-year veteran built on a successful 2020 campaign, securing the first playoff win of his career. This should have been the year he elevated a talented Browns roster to the ranks of Super Bowl contenders. And this was the season when Mayfield raised his game to the ranks of elite passersby and joined contemporaries in securing long-term financial security.
But instead, Mayfield’s game has been uneven as he came up short against other young passersby of Kansas City Chiefs Patrick Mahomes, Los Angeles Chargers’ Justin Herbert and Arizona Cardinals’ Kyler Murray. He has bumped into his non-throwing shoulder while caressing a torn labrum. Keep him out of Thursday night’s game against Denver and possibly require off-season surgery to repair. The Browns have a 3-3 record and are behind the Baltimore Ravens and Cincinnati Bengals in the AFC North. And Mayfield still has too many questions to answer about his ability, leaving Brown in a dilemma.
Instead of a year of growth and clarity, Brown and his quarterback have lived in a wait-and-see mode until now.
NFL Power Rankings:Where do the Browns sit after the latest loss?
When Cleveland selected Mayfield for the first time in 2018, team officials saw him as a long-awaited remedy for the quarterback’s revolving door that the team endured. He believed Mayfield could give his long-suffering fans a reason to believe as he took the franchise to new heights.
Mayfield has certainly brought a rare fixture to Cleveland’s quarterback position. These past four seasons have represented the longest runs by the Browns starting quarterback since Bernie Koser took over in 1985.
But the Browns are still largely waiting for Mayfield to arrive.
The 6-1,215-pound signal-collar still hasn’t delivered the same prolific and transformative performance as peers like Mahomes, Buffalo Bills’ Josh Allen and Baltimore Ravens’ Lamar Jackson.
All three have had multiple playoff appearances. Mahomes holds multiple divisional titles and one Super Bowl title, and both he and Jackson have won NFL MVPs. Meanwhile, Mayfield and Brown have not finished higher than third in their division over the past three seasons.
Through three-plus seasons, Mayfield has been solid, but not elite. He’s still largely riding on potential.
It is worth noting that Mayfield has not benefited from the same kind of stability that has assisted Mahomes, Allen and Jackson in their development. While all three of them have played under the same head coach and franchise power structures during their respective careers, Mayfield is on his third head coach (not including 2018 interim head coach Greg Williams), second general manager and third offensive coordinator.
But Mayfield also lacks the same distinctive physical traits that Mahomes, Allen and Jackson have. He hasn’t demonstrated the same kind of magic with the ball as Mahomes does, can’t overpower it like Allen does, and can’t race past defenders like Jackson.
But Mayfield boasts leadership skills, rigor and an unshakeable confidence, and he can move well enough to extend plays, and boasts a quick release.
However, consistency remains an issue.
The Browns had hoped that this season, while armed with consistency and a plethora of weapons from a second year under Kevin Stefanski, Mayfield could take the next leap forward. But the results have been mixed.
He is completing his career best pass of 67.1%, while setting another personal best with 97.8 passer rating. However, Mayfield’s 245.7 passing yards per game rank 20 in the NFL, and has thrown only six touchdown passes while bouncing three interceptions. For comparison, Mahomes is third with 314.5 yards, throwing 18 touchdowns and eight interceptions. Allen is eighth with 287.2 yards per game with 15 touchdowns and three interceptions, and Jackson is ninth with 281 yards with nine touchdown passes and five picks.
What’s worse: Unlike the three of them, Mayfield has yet to establish himself as the undisputed go-to person in his crime.
As in previous seasons, Mayfield has acted more as a game manager than an offensive catalyst. When the game is on the line, the Chiefs, Ravens, and Bills and their opponents know that a trio of quarterbacks will be asked to deliver in some form.
But Mayfield hasn’t reached that level yet.
In Week 1, Mayfield threw an interception while trying to lead his team on a late game comeback against the Chiefs.
Two weeks earlier, as Cleveland dropped the Chargers 42–41 and 2:55, instead of placing the game on Mayfield’s shoulders on third and nine, Stefanski called a draw play to Kareem Hunt, who stopped short of first down. Los Angeles would go on to score a game-winning touchdown on the following drive.
Stefanski has previously relied on his quarterback. But such a decision certainly does not reflect such trust.
Mayfield certainly doesn’t deserve all the blame for Brown’s discrepancies. Their season could have got off to a better start had Cleveland not suffered injuries, including missed times by both of their top wide receivers, starting offensive tackles and now both leading running backs.
However, Jackson found himself in a similar situation and still managed to deliver, winning five straight games.
However, Mayfield is now battling his own injury.
There is hope within the Browns organization that comfort will help Mayfield. After Thursday’s game, Cleveland doesn’t play again until October 31 against the upcoming Pittsburgh Steelers for an important divisional game.
Mayfield aims to return to action as quickly as possible and position his team for a playoff push. A strong string of performances will also help it gain leverage in contract negotiations this off-season. But for now, it’s secondary to Mayfield.
However, evaluations for the future are never-ending, and the Browns will continue to wrestle with the question of how to handle the future of their quarterback. After taking on a fifth-year option on his rookie contract, the Cleveland brass could technically wait until the off-season after the 2022 season to take a call.
But until Mayfield finds the consistency he needs to take himself and his team to the next level, the Browns will remain in a holding pattern.
Follow USA Today Sports’ Mike Jones on Twitter @ByMikeJones.
