The Baker Mayfield story is far from fully written but it already contains a lot of chapters. Walk on a Texas Tech. Walk on at Oklahoma. Planted flag in Columbus, Ohio. Heisman Trophy winner. Tackled by police. First overall pick in the NFL draft.
Even his time in the NFL has been full of a ton of interest and intrigue. He’s had three full-time head coaches (Hue Jackson, Freddie Kitchens, Kevin Stefanski) and one interim (Gregg Williams). Numerous offensive coordinators and systems during those coaching tenures. Broke the record for rookie touchdown passes. Tons of television commercials.
Yet, until 2020, success in the NFL at the level Mayfield wanted alluded him. That caused a lot of questions about whether he was the man for the future in Cleveland especially when the Browns signed Case Keenum on the first day of free agency under their new front office.
After showing his worth last season, Mayfield and Cleveland enter a time when contract extension talks are likely. Like many top picks before him, Mayfield could sign for the long-term between his third and fourth seasons in the league.
How will his struggles during the chaos of the Browns impact those contract discussions? How will his sophomore campaign under Kitchens be seen?
If the Browns do not offer Mayfield a quality contract, they could become a name on a list… if the list still exists… from Mayfield’s college days:
The hope is that Cleveland and Mayfield will get an extension done sooner rather than later but looking back at his mentality in college is interesting to revisit.