Cleveland Browns: Will Baker Mayfield finally meet expectations in 2020?
By Jim Alley
Will Baker Mayfield and the Cleveland Browns finally live up to the hype?
In April 2018 the Cleveland Browns finally seemed to have found the answer to their quarterback question when they selected the Heisman Trophy winner from Oklahoma, Baker Mayfield, with the first overall pick. It was a question they’d been trying to answer for almost two decades and the former Sooner was the next-appointed savior.
Fast-forward to the start of the 2018 season when Mayfield took over for the injured Tyrod Taylor and led the Browns to their first victory in over a year. In his rookie campaign, Mayfield and the Browns went 7-8-1, their best record since the 2007 season. And Mayfield would also set a new rookie passing touchdown record by throwing 27 touchdowns to 14 interceptions. Not bad for someone who’s potential was in question prior to the draft.
After the 2018 season, the Browns seemed to find their new head coach in Freddie Kitchens and bolstered the offense by securing weapons for Mayfield when they traded for wideout Odell Beckham Jr. to join his college teammate, Jarvis Landry, along with signing Kareem Hunt and drafting Nick Chubb to improve the running game.
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These moves on the Browns’ behalf led to a lot of hype about this time last offseason. All the analysts and reports pointed to a triumphant return to the playoffs for the Dawg Pound. But that’s not what happened.
Rather, the Browns and Mayfield fell flat on their faces, going a horrific 6-10 while Mayfield threw 22 touchdowns to a disgusting 21 interceptions. Nothing seemed to work for this team as they never even seemed like they were a real team.
Time for the Cleveland Browns to finally turn it around?
Now it’s 2020 and we have the same story over again; the Browns are going to bounce back in under new head coach Kevin Stefanski leading the way. Cleveland is destined to finally make it back to the promised land after years of disappointment. But will it actually happen this time?
Who knows? At this point, it’s hard to tell how this team is going to work out. However, it would be safe to say that Stefanski might be the better-suited head coach to teach Mayfield and help his development.
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The young quarterback has the potential to be an MVP-level player and has the supporting cast to help get him there. Simply put, the Browns must figure out how to work together as a unit. The quarterback and the franchise won’t pull themselves out of the swamp if they aren’t able to find and build chemistry.