Getty Quarterback Baker Mayfield #6 of the Cleveland Browns looks on after being sacked against the Baltimore Ravens in the second half at M&T Bank Stadium on November 28, 2021 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images)
The Cleveland Browns spent much of last week playing hard ball with Baker Mayfield. As it turns out, their spurned quarterback was giving as good as he got behind the scenes.
Mayfield requested a trade following the Browns’ first meeting with QB Deshaun Watson on Tuesday, March 15. After Watson eliminated Cleveland from contention, the front office made it clear they would not honor Mayfield’s ask. Eventually the Browns lured Watson back to the negotiating table by offering him a five-year, $230 million contract. Once he accepted the deal, trading Mayfield became a foregone conclusion and rendered the dispute moot.
But before that happened, Mayfield gave the Browns an ultimatum. Either the team trade him immediately to a franchise where he was truly wanted, or he would sit out until they did. Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com reported the details of the story on Sunday morning.
Baker Mayfield had no intentions of playing for the #Browns in 2022, which may have revived the Deshaun Watson trade. He was prepared to sit out offseason program, minicamp, training camp & more if that’s what it took: Browns Insider
“Baker Mayfield had no intentions of playing for the #Browns in 2022, which may have revived the Deshaun Watson trade,” Cabot tweeted. “He was prepared to sit out the offseason program, minicamp, training camp & more if that’s what it took: Browns Insider.”
It now doesn’t appear likely Mayfield will sit out at all, as the Browns mortgaged their future for Watson by sending the Texans first-round picks in the next three NFL Drafts along with a third-round pick in 2023 and a fourth-round selection in 2024.
The latest Browns news straight to your inbox! Subscribe to the Heavy on Browns newsletter here!
AFC Rival Has Emerged as Top Trade Candidate For Mayfield
Getty ImagesQuarterback Baker Mayfield of the Cleveland Browns is expected to be traded after the team signed Deshaun Watson.
Atop the list of teams that could use Mayfield are the Indianapolis Colts. Indy missed out on the playoffs after blowing a win-and-in game on the road against the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 18. The Colts parted ways with quarterback Carson Wentz not long after, sending him to the Washington Commanders in a trade on March 9.
Cody Benjamin of CBS Sports listed the Colts as the top candidate for Mayfield considering their ready-made playoff roster led by star running back Jonathan Taylor.
“They are the team closest to contention without any clear answer at QB,” Benjamin wrote on March 18. “Mayfield, meanwhile, has proven he can win while leaning on the run, which the Colts are built to do.”
Browns Likely to Trade Mayfield Soon With Several Potential Suitors
Getty ImagesQuarterback Baker Mayfield of the Cleveland Browns.
There are a handful of NFL teams aside from the Colts that still have major question marks at quarterback, several of whom were losers in the Watson sweepstakes that the Browns surged out of nowhere to win. Any of those franchises might make sense as a landing spot for Mayfield.
Among the list of likely suitors are the Seattle Seahawks following their trade of Russell Wilson to the Denver Broncos, as well as the Atlanta Falcons who struck out for Watson but have indicated they are prepared to move on from former MVP Matt Ryan for the right replacement.
The New Orleans Saints have Jameis Winston as an option but were also interested in Watson, while the Carolina Panthers remain a mess under center and would likely grasp at any upgrade over Sam Darnold.
NFL Network’s Kurt Warner on Friday also floated the idea of trading Mayfield within the division to the Pittsburgh Steelers. That seems less likely as the Steelers recently signed free agent QB Mitchell Trubisky and play the Browns in two regular season games each year.