Getty Seahawks general manager John Schneider (left) and head coach Pete Carroll appear to have won the Russell Wilson trade.
As the NFL quarterback carousel continues to spin, a potentially newly available signal caller could be a trade option for the Seattle Seahawks. As the Browns explore a deal for Deshaun Watson, Cleveland’s Baker Mayfield might be the next quarterback to be traded.
Cleveland.com’s Mary Kay Cabot reported that the Browns are not expected to include Mayfield in a potential Watson deal. This would open the door for the Seahawks to explore a separate trade for Mayfield.
NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport mentioned the Seahawks as a team that could “make a play for Baker,” he said on the March 15 episode of “The Pat McAfee Show.”
The Seahawks’ chances of landing Mayfield might not be dependent on a Watson trade.
“Baker Mayfield won’t be headed back home to Texas as part of the trade offer for Deshaun Watson, but he could be dealt even if the trade doesn’t happen,” Cabot wrote on March 15. “A league source tells cleveland.com that the Texans want picks and not players, which is a major reason Mayfield isn’t part of the Browns’ package. The Texans are also prepared to start Davis Mills, their 2021 third-round pick out of Stanford, again next season.”
Cabot added that the Browns and Mayfield appear to be headed for a divorce, regardless of Watson’s destination.
“But the visit with Watson seems like a dealbreaker, and Mayfield and the Browns could be headed for a divorce regardless if Watson lands here or not,” Cabot wrote.
Cabot named the Seahawks and Indianapolis Colts as potential landing spots for Mayfield if the Browns opt to explore a deal.
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Why Would the Seahawks Be Interested in Mayfield?
For the Seahawks, Mayfield would represent a low-risk quarterback option for 2022 that could turn into a long-term solution. The Browns quarterback has one year remaining on his four-year, $32.6 million contract and is slated to make $18.8 million this upcoming season.
Seattle would get an opportunity to work with Mayfield for a year to see if he could resurrect his career with a change of scenery. And if Mayfield did not work out, the Seahawks could explore what is expected to be a stronger quarterback draft in 2023.
Mayfield threw for 3,010 yards, 17 touchdowns and 13 interceptions while completing 60.5% of his passes last season. He struggled to find consistency in his 14 starts while playing through a shoulder injury.
Mayfield, the Browns’ No. 1 pick in the 2018 draft, is just one season removed from posting 3,563 yards, 26 touchdowns and eight interceptions while completing 62.8% of his passes and leading the Browns to the playoffs in 2020.
Seahawks May Have a Buy-Low Opportunity in Mayfield
Baker Mayfield completes 22 of his final 23 attempts today for 297 yards, 5 TD and this total DIME to win the game.
After months of insisting that Mayfield would be their QB1 again in 2022, the Browns met with Watson, perhaps signaling the end of the Mayfield era in Cleveland. On March 15, Mayfield tweeted what read like a goodbye letter to Cleveland.
With many uncertainties, here is where my head and heart is.
Mayfield’s trade value is difficult to gauge, but the Seahawks might be able to get a bit of a discount for the quarterback. The recent Carson Wentz deal between the Colts and the Washington Commanders could resemble a potential Seahawks package for Mayfield.
Washington traded a 2022 third-round pick and a 2023 third-round selection (which could turn into a second-rounder if Wentz plays 70% of the team’s snaps), and the two teams also swapped 2022 second-round picks. In other words, it is unlikely the Seahawks would have to give up any first-round capital in a deal for Mayfield.
Seahawks Considered Trading for Top Pick in 2018 Draft
“It wouldn’t make sense to me if Baker Mayfield was part of a Deshaun Watson deal.. I’d make Baker available to a team like the Colts or Seahawks” ~@RapSheet
Even when the Seahawks had Russell Wilson, who was traded to the Denver Broncos on March 8, the team was linked to Mayfield. Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio and Chris Simms reported in May 2020 that the Seahawks discussed a potential trade with the Browns for the No. 1 pick in the 2018 NFL draft. Seattle would have been able to select Mayfield or another quarterback of their choosing.
Rapoport said he did not expect Mayfield to be included in a deal for Watson, also noting the Seahawks as a team that could go after Baker.
“It wouldn’t make sense to me if he would, because I would think it’d be more, you give draft picks and then you say, ‘All right, well, Baker’s available,'” Rapoport said on “The Pat McAfee Show.” “Does a team like the Colts or the Seahawks, do they then make a play for Baker? Like it’s hard to include all these guys in the [Texans] deal. It’s actually much easier to do them as separate deals.”