Cleveland Browns: 5 Reasons Baker Mayfield must remain starter
4. Mayfield showed more in his limited work than Taylor in 2.5 games
Prior to suffering a concussion, it’s worth noting just how ineffective Tyrod Taylor was on Thursday night against the Jets. He finished the game going 4-of-14 for 19 yards while taking three sacks that totaled a loss of 22 yards. Sure, he added 22 yards with his legs, but with such ineffectiveness being present in the passing attack, how much does that honestly matter?
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In truth, Taylor hasn’t shown a great deal as the starter for Cleveland. Over the two previous games that he started ahead of Mayfield, the veteran went 37-of-70 for 443 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. And while he did make an impact again with his legs, it was frustratingly clear that the offense was unable to really push the ball down the field, even when opportunities were there to do so. It was safe, but maddeningly so.
Mayfield, however, lit a blazing fire beneath the rest of the offense. He went out and showed every reason why he was selected with the top pick in the draft. The rookie quarterback finished the evening going 17-of-23 for 201 yards. While he didn’t find the end zone, he consistently moved the ball down the field and led the offense to putting points on the board.
It was clear that every level of the offense was more effective with Mayfield running the show. The Jets defense finally had to respect every level of the field and it showed. After seeing that in stark contrast to Taylor, it would be hard to go back to anything other than what Mayfield provided.