“It would be a beautiful move” - Skip Bayless wants Baker Mayfield to backup Tom Brady in 2022
When the Cleveland Browns acquired quarterback Deshaun Watson, it left many wondering where Baker Mayfield would be traded. Nearly a week later, the quarterback carousel has been dwindling down, and it's a wildcard guess as to where Mayfield will end up.
Skip Bayless recently addressed the situation and thinks it would be ideal if Mayfield could be Tom Brady's backup.
Bayless said:
“Would I mind it if he went to Tampa? I wouldn't mind it because Bruce Arians is on record, he loves Baker Mayfield. What do we know about Tom Brady? Well, I believe he was forced, as I was the first to guess this. He was forced to go back to Tampa for one year because it fell through. Because your Shanahan's told him no for the second time. And he said, ‘Okay, watch this. I'll go back to Tampa. And I'll figure it out again.’ And once he went back, some players started to trickle back into the fold. And all of a sudden, they're the second betting favorite to win the Super Bowl. They're the favorite to win the NFC because he went back to Tampa."
Bayless added that the perfect spot for Baker right now is to be behind and learn behind the GOAT, Tom Brady.
"The point is, the perfect spot for Baker right now, if in fact, he's going to be a backup quarterback anywhere there's only one place to be a backup. For a coach who loved you before your draft and behind the GOAT. It's like ‘Okay, I’ll go back to Harvard Business School for one year. I'll go back to Harvard for one year just to learn what I don't know about playing quarterback. I'll sit in the quarterback room with the GOAT for 17 games. And it would be a beautiful move for Jason Licht and Bruce Arians going forward. A beautiful move. It would be a score.”
Bruce Arians has had his eye on Baker Mayfield since 2018
If there's one person who's always believed in Mayfield, it's Bucs head coach Bruce Arians.
“Bruce Arians apparently has been eyeing Baker Mayfield for a while; in 2018, Arians said the only team he’d end retirement to coach was the Browns,” Pro Football Talk tweeted.
Of course, he contradicted this as he joined the Bucs later on, but his reasoning for wanting to join Cleveland back then likely had to do with the potential in Baker Mayfield. Arians now has a chance to make Mayfield the eventual successor to Tom Brady.