"Every time we play him, he balls" - Joe Burrow opens up on Browns' treatment of Baker Mayfield
Baker Mayfield and Joe Burrow were both the first overall picks of their respective draft classes. Yet the starts to their NFL careers couldn't have been any more different.
While Burrow has already established himself as the Cincinnati Bengals' QB1 for years to come, thanks to his scintillating performances in the 2021 NFL season, Mayfield is staring at an uncertain future.
Joe Burrow led a franchise that hadn’t won a playoff game in 31 years to the Super Bowl while coming off a major knee injury and being sacked 70 times.
Anyone hating on that isn’t worth the time to argue.
The Browns' trade for Deshuan Watson earlier in the offseason shows the franchise has lost its faith in their 2018 first overall pick. Burrow, who plays in the same division as the Browns, has seen the underfire quarterback upclose while in action over the past two seasons. And now, during a recent appearance on the Full Send podcast, the quarterback opened up about the plight of his contemporary:
“That’s a tough situation. You know, he was hurt all last year. Every time we play him, he balls. First time we played him, Thursday night, Week 2 of my rookie year, we lost like 34-30, or something. He balled. The next time we played them, I throw for 400 yards. And he goes like 25-for-28 with five touchdowns. Goes on a two-minute drive, touchdown. They won the game. I haven’t beat the Browns yet."
Given the quarterback's recent injury struggles and erratic performances over the years, the Browns decided to pounce on Watson, who was available for a trade. Burrow admitted that taking a chance on a player of his calibre is the right thing to do. But he also fully expects the Oklahoma Sooner product to come back stronger than ever as well:
“I think, when you have a guy like Deshaun, you gotta take a chance on that. He’s such a great player. But Baker will land on his feet. He’s a really good player."
NFL teams still in the hunt for Baker Mayfield
Despite Mayfield's recent injury concerns, the quarterback has shown that he has the talent to excel in an NFL offense. Several teams were on the lookout for the Browns quarterback after the Deshaun Watson trade went through. But nothing concrete has yet materialized.
As I've reported several times, the Panthers are still interested in Mayfield/Garoppolo at QB, but in order for a trade to take place the other team would have to agree to pick up a large portion of their salary. Nothing has changed on that front for weeks.
According to NFL insider Steve Reed, the Carolina Panthers are one team who are still considering a trade for either Mayfield or San Francisco 49ers' Jimmy Garoppolo. The Browns quarterback is unlikely to dress up for the franchise next season, unless Deshaun Watson is suspended by the league for violating its personal conduct policy.
Where do you think Mayfield will land following a trade? Let us know in the comments section below.