Getty Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield.
When Kevin Stefanski was hired as the Cleveland Browns head coach, it was assumed a big part of his duties as an offensive-minded skipper would be to help Baker Mayfield rebound after a less than stellar sophomore season in the NFL
A year after setting the rookie touchdown record, Mayfield struggled to play consistently behind a patchwork offensive line. He finished his season season with 3,827 yards, 22 touchdowns and 21 interceptions, closing out the year ranked next-to-last in both passer rating (78.8) and completion percentage (59.4%).
“It was a different year for me,” Mayfield told reporters after the Browns loss to the Bengals that closed out the year. “Definitely didn’t have it all figured out. A lot of learning lessons, life lessons for me. I’m going to come back a different animal come spring time.”
Despite Mayfield’s regression in his second season, Stefanski isn’t worried on bit about the task at hand to turn the QB’s play around.
“The skill set that our quarterback has is legit,” Stefanski told reporters during his press conference on Tuesday. “He’s as accurate as they come. I think there’s plenty of things that we’ll do schematically to hopefully make life easier on him, and I’m looking forward to the jump that this kid will take. He’s such a young player. The guys I’ve been around, they put their mind to it, they start to grind on this thing and understand the whys and concepts we’re teaching — I really think this kid has a chance to take off.”
Kevin Stefanski Not Putting Ceiling on Baker Mayfield
Stefanski worked with a variety of quarterbacks during his time in Minnesota, but most recently it was Kirk Cousins. This season, Cousins finished with a 107.4 QB rating, good for fourth in the NFL. Stefanski believes the “sky is the limit” for Mayfield.
“He’s the quarterback, he’s the trigger man, and that’s the exciting part to me,” Stefanski said of Mayfield. “I’m still in the infancy of studying last year and we’ll identify some things as we get going, but certainly, when you’re talking about this job and this franchise and everything that goes with it, you talk about the quarterback, and I think the sky’s the limit for the kid.”
If the Browns hope to erase the memories of a disappointing 6-10 season, Mayfield will have to play a big part.
Kevin Stefanski Looking to Instill ‘Culture of Accountability’
GettySteelers quarterback Mason Rudolph fights with Browns defensive end Myles Garrett.
The Browns said mostly all the right things with Freddie Kitchens at the helm, but it really did not show on the field. Cleveland was one of the most undisciplined teams in the NFL, highlighted by the helmet-swinging incident between Browns defensive end Myles Garrett and Steelers quarterback Mason Rudolph.
Stefanski has a plan to turn things around and instill a “culture of accountability” that didn’t previously exist.
Stefanski says the Browns will have a “culture of accountability.”
“We’ll have structures in place the players will understand,” Stefanski told reporters. “And we’re going to be demanding and we’re going to hold each player accountable. I know this about players, they may not ask you for that, but that’s what they want.”
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