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Cleveland Browns quarterback Tyrod Taylor was forced to leave during Thursday Night Football in Week 3 due to injury. After struggling mightily through the first half against the New York Jets, many fans were calling for rookie Baker Mayfield to replace Taylor prior to the news.
The Browns’ starting quarterback completed just 4-of-14 passes for 19 yards and was sacked three times. He rushed for 22 yards as well, but the Browns failed to score a single point prior before the injury.
Taylor has been ruled out for the remainder of Thursday’s game, according to the NFL Network broadcast. Mayfield will be an interesting name to watch, and even beyond that should have the attention of fantasy football owners.
Baker Mayfield’s Fantasy Upside
Predicting the production of a rookie quarterback can be nearly impossible, but Mayfield flashed upside throughout the preseason and had an excellent collegiate career. Over the span of four preseason games, Mayfield threw for 501 yards, two touchdowns and one interception in limited action.
Attempting to predict NFL success off preseason play is tough to do, though, but Mayfield impressed in his brief stint ahead of halftime in Week 3. After replacing Taylor with around two minutes remaining in the first half, the rookie completed 3-of-4 passes for 47 yards and led the Browns to their first points of the night.
Mayfield was a superb college quarterback who began his career at Texas Tech and then transferred to Oklahoma. Over his three seasons with the Sooners, he threw 119 touchdowns against just 21 interceptions.
Mayfield’s Fantasy Outlook if He Remains the Starter
With Taylor ruled out, Browns fans will get to see their new quarterback for at least the rest of this game. In turn, Mayfield will now have the opportunity to prove to the coaching staff that he’s prepared to start at the NFL level and may be in consideration for the starting role moving forward.
This news immediately makes Mayfield relevant from a fantasy football standpoint. Cleveland is set to face the Oakland Raiders, Baltimore Ravens, Los Angeles Chargers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers over the next four weeks.
Of those teams, only the Buccaneers (No. 31) rank in the bottom half of the NFL in passing yards allowed per game, so Mayfield won’t have it easy if named the starter beyond Week 3.
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Tyrod Taylor Ruled Out: Baker Mayfield Fantasy Football Impact