This is a good question. The good news for Baker Mayfield in all of this is twofold, 1 he gets away from one of the worst owners in the NFL in Jimmy Haslem, and 2 he leaves Cleveland as the only quarterback in the past twenty-two years to win a playoff game.
If I’m Baker Mayfield or his agent, where do I want to be once the Browns write him a check for this season and then cut him?
My answer is if I’m Baker there are two teams, I have my eye on currently… those two teams would be the Pittsburgh Steelers with Mike Tomlin, and Seattle Seahawks with Pete Carroll.
Both of these teams made quarterback moves already this season. The Steelers added Mitchell Trubisky while the Seahawks added Drew Lock in the trade with the Denver Broncos.
Both of these teams are proven winners. Both have head coaches who I think both know Mitchell Trubisky and Drew Lock aren’t the answer beyond being an NFL backup quarterback.
If I’m Baker, I would get the settlement figured out with the Browns. The Browns by the way are going to have twenty-two other issues to deal with once Deshaun Watson’s civil lawsuits begin to unfold.
Even if Baker starts as the backup behind Trubisky that would be my destination if I’m thinking this all the way through.
I previously had a healthy Baker somewhere around No. 17 or so on my NFL quarterback rating list before the left shoulder injury. He’s not an NFL top ten quarterback. But with the Steelers, they don’t need a top ten quarterback to be a playoff contender.
They need a ball distributor, a winner, a guy with a chip on his shoulder, and someone who takes care of the football. I wouldn’t hold Baker’s interceptions against him from last season because he shouldn’t have even been on the field playing. Think about that. Why would you want to play for an organization which didn’t sit you down when it was obvious you were physically unfit to play.
The answer is…because you’re the Cleveland Browns and you’ve been the worst NFL team the past twenty-two years or so.
The Pittsburgh Steelers are the anti-Cleveland Browns if ever there was such a thing. The Rooney family is what Jimmy Haslem will never provide in Cleveland, namely, solid, consistent leadership.
If I’m Baker Mayfield this is the path I would pursue. It might require some patience. It will require the acknowledgement the next deal will be for an NFL mid-level quarterback versus that of a former No.1 pick in the draft.
If Baker had been sat down with his injury last year like he should have been his… NFL body of work would be a three-year resume. Year 1, his rookie year the Browns missed the playoffs on the last play of the season. Year 2, the Browns appeared playoff bound until Miles Garrett got suspended the entire season for the hit on Mason Rudolph. Year 3, the Browns made the playoffs, beat the Steelers in the first round, and lost to the Kansas Chiefs on the road on their last offensive series of the game.
Baker Mayfield to Pittsburgh is where he should be headed if the cards play out correctly…. even if he starts off there as the backup.
I would think for Baker Mayfield…patience is the key word moving forward.