Getty Images Baker Mayfield of the Cleveland Browns.
Baker Mayfield has been under fire this week and the Cleveland Browns quarterback spoke out on social media with a strongly-worded post.
Mayfield is fresh off a four-interception performance in a loss against the Packers that made the Browns playoff hopes an uphill climb. That being said, Cleveland can still make it back to the postseason if they win out but also need some help, requiring the Ravens and Bengals to lose this week. If everything falls their way, the Browns could win the AFC North.
“Bounce back,” Mayfield wrote on Instagram. “Far from finished.”
Mayfield did not hide from the fact that he played miserably against the Packers, addressing it after the Christmas Day loss. The Packers turned his three interceptions into 21 points in the first half.
“It was just missed throws,” Mayfield said. “Uncharacteristic, and I hurt this team. That’s the most frustrating thing for me, because I thought our defense played tremendous against a really, really good offense. But when you turn the ball over on your own territory, in the red zone and around midfield and give them extra opportunities, they’re going to take advantage of it. That’s just who they are.”
Browns Expect Mayfield to Play Better
Mayfield has been hobbled this season by multiple injuries, including a torn labrum. But the Browns brass was fairly clear that they expected a healthier Mayfield to be the best version of himself over the final five weeks of the season following their bye week.
“I think Baker told you the other night, he did not play up to his standard, and we expect him to play at a high level,” Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski said on Monday, December 27. “I think confidence-wise with the quarterback position, you get too much credit, and you get too much blame. That is just how it is. He will bounce back, and I think he will be better for it.”
Stefanski said it might not be fun but he’ll go over all the mistakes Mayfield made in the film room in an effort to keep it from happening again.
“With the quarterbacks, it is no fun to watch the interception reel, talk through them and learn from them. It is again not fun because you do not want to turn the ball over, but we do have to learn from them because we have to take care of the ball,” Stefanski said. “It is important to how we win. We did not do a great job there, but we will have to look at the tape together, watch it and then make sure we get better moving forward.”
Baker Mayfield Fighting for Future With Browns
The final stretch of the season is not only important for the Browns playoff hopes, but also for Mayfield’s future in Cleveland. The former top overall pick has one year left on his deal thanks to the Browns executing his fifth-year option in the offseason. However, the sides have yet to agree on a long-term deal that would make him the franchise quarterback in Cleveland going forward.
What Mayfield has maintained since the start of the year is that winning will solve everything when it comes to his future. He now has two more chances to prove he can be the guy going forward in Cleveland.