NFL: Baker Mayfield May Have Completely Ruined Browns’ Hope This Season

Cleveland Browns star quarterback Baker Mayfield appears like he’s ruining all the team’s hopes this season.

After Tyrod Taylor went down with an injury last season, Mayfield took over as the Browns’ quarterback and eventually became a starter for the team. Many were amused by Mayfield as he made his own name in his rookie season but has taken a step backward this season after a series of unnecessary events.

In his first 21 games, in which he had 20 starts through Week 7 of 2019, Mayfield has completed more than 61 percent of his passes for more than 5,400 yards and 33 touchdowns to go with 26 interceptions.

As a result, the Browns are 8-12 in his starts, which generally doesn’t look great except from the fact that the franchise won a total of four games from 2015-2017, including a winless campaign last year in that stretch.

Subsequently, high expectations grew for the Browns entering 2019, with Mayfield coming into his second season in the league. The team has evidently given him help by trading for Odell Beckham in the offseason. However, things haven’t worked out according to plan as the defense has struggled and Mayfield has regressed after his first season in the NFL.

Looking at his recent performances, Mayfield leads all quarterbacks with 12 interceptions through the first seven weeks of the season. With a 2-5 record, the Browns find themselves in an unsteady position at third place in the AFC North, behind the 5-2 Baltimore Ravens.

With Mayfield playing a significant role this season, some people were talking about the Browns finally ending their playoff drought and some even thought they could finally make the Super Bowl. But all those predictions seem unlikely to happen. From the look of how things are going, the Browns are believed to be lucky to end the season at .500, a winning percentage which wouldn’t be good enough to secure a spot in the postseason.

Many are convinced that a lot of these downsides have to do with Mayfield’s attitude. In fact, Ryan Leaf, a former NFL player who has had a quite negative reputation in the league, sees a similarity between him and the way Mayfield handles poor play and losses.

In an interview with “The Rich Eisen Show,” Leaf talked about seeing Mayfield blaming the officials for “some of their calls” after the Browns’ four-point loss to the Seahawks earlier this season. According to Leaf, Mayfield’s attitude is a huge setback because “as a quarterback, you want to be able to stand up in front of everybody and take personal accountability.”