Getty Quarterback Baker Mayfield #6 of the Cleveland Browns during pregame warm-ups before the game against the Houston Texans at FirstEnergy Stadium on September 19, 2021 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
Cleveland Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield is being painted as a player with little to no value on the trade market, but that’s not actually the whole truth.
In reality, the Browns’ moves to ink three new quarterbacks to the roster, including former Houston Texans signal caller Deshaun Watson, have forfeited trade leverage to potential suitors. Mayfield is owed nearly $19 million next season because Cleveland guaranteed him that money. Now, the Browns are ready to move off of it, but even teams interested in bringing Mayfield into the fold aren’t going to let general manager Andrew Berry and company off the hook on the cheap.
Albert Breer of Monday Morning Quarterback appeared on the Monday, April 11 edition of “The Rich Eisen Show” and spoke to Mayfield’s actual value around the NFL.
“You know, I think this is really going to come down to Cleveland’s willingness to take on money, and how much money they’re willing to take on, because I don’t think Baker has zero value across the league,” Breer said. “I think he’s still seen as sort of a back half of the NFL starter. I don’t think he’s seen as this guy who only can be a backup.”
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Multiple Trade Suitors Exist For Mayfield if Browns Pay Part of QB’s Salary
GettyBaker Mayfield of the Cleveland Browns reacts during the first half of a game against the Baltimore Ravens at FirstEnergy Stadium on December 12, 2021 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images)
There are at least two teams that make sense as trade partners for Mayfield, and possibly as many as four.
The Seattle Seahawks represent the most logical option after dealing QB Russell Wilson to the Denver Broncos this offseason. The Carolina Panthers also have to be in the mix considering head coach Matt Rhule enters 2022 on the hot seat with no one to turn to under center outside of Sam Darnold and P.J. Walker.
The Atlanta Falcons have also been floated as a possible destination for Mayfield, despite signing former Las Vegas Raiders backup quarterback Marcus Mariota to a two-year deal in March. And finally, the Pittsburgh Steelers have been mentioned multiple times as a team that would be interested in signing Mayfield were he released, though a trade within the AFC North Division remains an unlikely outcome.
However, if the Browns hope to unload Mayfield to any of those teams, they’re going to have to pay up in the form of eating a healthy portion of his contract. Breer laid out the reasons why while speaking with Eisen Monday.
“If somebody was going to take [Mayfield] on as a reclamation project and say, ‘Okay, we’re going to roll the dice on him for one year. He’s going to be our starter.’ Then maybe they’d be willing to pay the $18.858 million,” Breer explained. “But lacking that … no one’s willing to pay that amount of money. So as much as anything else, it’s going to come down to how much money the Browns are willing to take on, and then finding the right suitor for him.”
Mayfield Has Card to Play to Force Browns’ Hand in Trade Talks
GettyBaker Mayfield of the Cleveland Browns warms up before a game against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium on November 14, 2021 in Foxborough, Massachusetts. (Photo by Adam Glanzman/Getty Images)
Mayfield does not have to sit by and be a passive observer as a team that spurned him tries to hash out a deal with another franchise that is undervaluing him, either in reality or as a tactic to gain leverage.
After the Browns first met with Watson in mid-March, Mayfield publicly demanded a trade. Now, however, his best option to force Cleveland’s hand isn’t to ask out. It’s to show up for every day of offseason activities and make the situation so uncomfortable that the Browns have no choice but to move him.
“I think it’s sort of going to come down to if Baker wants to force the issue,” Breer said. “And I think one thing he can do to force the issue, if he desires to do that … I think it’s like, show up to the offseason program. And that in itself, if you show up, that becomes a problem for the team. They just want you to go away, you know? So maybe he shows up to the offseason program and he tries to force the issue.”