Baker Deserves The Benefit Of The Doubt, But Still A Big Year For Him

There is no question that the Cleveland Browns were a disjointed mess in 2019. If you think of them as a jigsaw puzzle, there were just too many pieces that were either missing or didn’t fit together.

It didn’t seem like the offensive coordinator fit with the head coach, and the general manager traded for an elite wide receiver for a group which had success running the football during the second half of the 2018 schedule.

Because of inexperience or perhaps star worship, head coach Freddie Kitchens and offensive coordinator seemed to feel obligated to force the ball to Odell Beckham Jr., and as a result the Browns got away from the things that led to a solid finish the year before.

All of this contributed to second year quarterback Baker Mayfield taking a step backwards.

The former first overall pick in ’19 saw his completion percentage drop (63.8% to 59.4%), his yards per passing attempt diminish (7.7 to 7.2), and his interception rate increase from 2.9% to 3.9%.

Not exactly what you want to see in terms of growth from your supposed franchise quarterback.

Did Mayfield prepare his body for the rigors of an NFL season during his first off-season? We believe he would admit (and has) he should have worked harder.

Did he let his success as a rookie go to his head a bit? Look, part of the reason John Dorsey chose him first overall was his self-confidence, so without question, he likely felt pretty good about himself after leading the Browns to their best record since 2007 as a rook.

This season, the chaos surrounding the team seems to be gone. Expectations has been tempered by last year’s disappointing 6-10 record, and new coach Kevin Stefanski seems more like a CEO than a football coach.

Stefanski came from Minnesota, where they loved to run the football (4th most attempts in the NFL in 2019) and so we would anticipate the emphasis in Cleveland will be establishing the run, much like it was in Mayfield’s first season.

That reliance on the ground game doesn’t mean Mayfield isn’t a “franchise” quarterback either. The Seahawks ran the ball the third most times in the league a year ago and no one thinks Russell Wilson is just along for the ride.

So, while some fans and media members have written off Mayfield as the future for the Browns, we chalk up his performance as a by product of the mess surrounding him last season.

The offense was different and you can’t tell us everyone in the organization felt pressure to force the ball to the shiny new toy that was Beckham. We think you could feel it from the moment the season kicked off in Cleveland against the Titans.

However, there is no question this is a huge year for the third year passer. A season that looked more like 2019 than 2018 will no doubt put question marks in the heads of the folks who run football operation in Berea. Andrew Berry didn’t draft him and Stefanski wasn’t given input on the choice either.

So, there is pressure on Mayfield to perform well this season, and without a normal training camp and even a half of pre-season play (probably the only action he would have seen), he is at a slight disadvantage.

But it seems the things the new coaching staff want to do offensively should emphasize the quarterback’s skill set. And certainly, the talent the Browns have accumulated helps immensely.

We are willing to write off last season as a result of the dysfunction within the building for Baker Mayfield. He won’t have that benefit this season. He has to produce.

Passing League? Browns Should Emphasize The Run.

It has been well documented over the past decade or so that the NFL is a passing league.

The game has been dominated by Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Aaron Rodgers, and more recently Patrick Mahomes, and their expertise in finding open receivers down the gridiron.

However, is the pendulum starting to swing back to the running game? And if so, is that another reason the Browns made the correct hire in Kevin Stefanski, and will he be able to maximize the talents of Nick Chubb (second in the NFL in rushing last season) and Kareem Hunt (former NFL rushing champion)?

Let’s look at the best running teams in the league last year–

Baltimore (14-2)
San Francisco (13-3, and Super Bowl participant)
Tennessee (9-7, played in AFC Championship Game)
Seattle (11-5)
Dallas (8-8)
Minnesota (10-6)
Indianapolis (7-9)
Buffalo (10-6)
Houston (10-6)
Arizona (5-10-1)

That’s seven of the 12 teams that advanced to the playoffs a year ago, and eight of the top ten had non-losing records.

Now, let’s look at the five worst running teams in the NFL:

1. Miami (5-11)
2. New York Jets (7-9)
3. Atlanta (7-9)
4. Pittsburgh (8-8)
5. Los Angeles Chargers (5-11)

No winning teams. Now, we understand some people will say those teams were behind a lot and so they were forced to throw the football, and that is true to some extent.

However, so is a statement made many, many years ago–If you can’t run the ball, and you can’t stop the run, it is difficult to win in the National Football League.

One of the things that didn’t make sense with the Browns’ offense a year ago, is they ranked fifth in the league in yards per rushing attempt, which makes sense since Chubb is on their roster.

Unfortunately, Cleveland ranked 22nd in the league in trying to run the ball. Remember, Hunt was active for the second half of the year, meaning coach Freddie Kitchens and offensive coordinator Todd Monken had two elite runners at their disposal.

So, the many fans who railed week in and week out about the ignorance of the running game were smarter than the people who were actually making decisions on a weekly basis.

Enter Stefanski. Notice the team he was the offensive coordinator for in 2019, the Vikings, ranked 6th in the NFL in rushing yardage, and also ranked fourth in rushing attempts.

Any questions on what will be the focus of the Browns’ offense this upcoming season?

The Browns ranked 19th in passing attempts last season, despite their 29th ranking in passing efficiency. Minnesota had the 6th best efficiency rating, but only two teams, Tennessee and Baltimore, threw the ball less often.

The only possible problem is Stefanski’s inexperience as a head coach, so you have to question will he give in to the constant carping from his wide receivers and outside the building to air it out and get the ball in the hands of Odell Beckham Jr. and Jarvis Landry.

Our guess is Stefanski is already selling his receivers on the additional big plays they can make after establishing a run game. Would they rather catch seven passes for 85 yards or catch five for 120 yards, or something to that effect?

Baker Mayfield looked very good in the play-action game in his rookie year, and we bet Stefanski will put that skill to good use this fall.

As for stopping the run? That’s something new defensive coordinator Joe Woods has to work on. The Browns were third worst in the NFL a year ago, and if you can’t put opponents in unfavorable down and distance situations, your best players (Myles Garrett, Denzel Ward) can’t do what they do best.

Should Be Optimism Only For The Browns.

We understand what defense mechanisms are and how they work. Even if we hadn’t learned them in our school days, we would know by how football fans in Cleveland behave.

Listening to sports talk radio in town (and yes, we also know that’s a dicey proposition), we are surprised by the number of Browns’ fans who have talked themselves out of expecting the playoffs, or at least a playoff contender in 2020.

Cleveland won five of its last seven games in 2018 to finish 7-8-1 and had a small chance to make the playoffs had it won their last game against Baltimore. Baker Mayfield set an NFL record for most touchdown passes by a rookie.

At this time a year ago, fans were jacked up about the upcoming season, especially after the trade that brought All Pro wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. to Cleveland.

Nothing could stop the Browns.

Except they had tons of dysfunction behind the scenes. Their general manager hired an offensive coordinator that brought in a system that clashed with what worked the year prior.

The addition of Beckham seems to have made everyone in the organization, including Mayfield, think the ball should be thrown to him every play, including those where he was tightly covered.

Basically, John Dorsey seemed to do everything to make sure everyone was NOT on the same page as the team was when they had a very good second half of the season in 2018.

He also ignored the offensive line, in fact, he traded one of the best on the team, if not the league, when he moved Kevin Zeitler to New York for Beckham.

And in typical Browns fashion, everyone paid for it by losing their jobs after the ’19 season.

So, the Browns have a new head coach, a new GM, a new offensive coordinator, and yet people still think they will operate the same as they did a year ago?

To us, here is where Paul DePodesta comes in. He was here for the teardown of the franchise by Sashi Brown, and saw the conflict between Brown and Hue Jackson. Then Dorsey came in and he clashed with Jackson too, and then tried to accelerate the plan by bringing in “stars” instead of people who fit.

DePodesta saw the conflict between Dorsey, the head coach he picked in Freddie Kitchens, and the offensive coordinator who wasn’t a good fit with Kitchens, and the chaos that ensued.

That’s why he emphasized a singular direction for the Cleveland Browns. He liked Kevin Stefanski when he interviewed him the year prior, and saw Andrew Berry and Stefanski got along at that time.

He saw the Browns have success as a running team in the second half of ’18, and the new head coach likes to run the football too. He will emphasize the team’s best offensive player, Nick Chubb, and a former NFL rushing champ in Kareem Hunt.

Could it all go to hell? It’s the NFL and anything can happen. But it appears that none of the upheaval surrounding last year’s circus should occur in 2020.

The Browns had talent, particularly on the offensive side of the football a year ago, and they still have it. It looks like this year, the coaching staff will use it properly and efficiently.

We understand the recent history of the Browns and get why people are pessimistic. But if they feel Kitchens was the problem last season, then that obstacle has been removed.

A winning team should be expected, and with some luck, so should the playoffs. Fans need to stop inventing reasons why the Browns can’t win.

Mayfield’s Problems In ’19 Based In Browns’ Dysfunction?

It is amazing to us that so many people have soured on Browns’ QB Baker Mayfield. At this time last year, he was the toast of the town in Cleveland, setting the record for touchdown passes by a rookie.

He was brash, cocky, and he won games. Cleveland went 6-7 in his starts, and while that’s not even above .500, when the team won a single game in the previous two seasons, you appreciate it.

Many of the fans who now want to replace Mayfield at the position also are highly critical of Freddie Kitchens, which doesn’t make sense to us.

If you think Kitchens was a terrible head coach, then doesn’t it follow he adversely affected the quarterback as well?

We said early in the 2019 campaign that it did not appear the Browns were running the same offense that was so successful in 2018 after Kitchens became the offensive coordinator.

Cleveland ranked 15th in the NFL in rushing attempts during the 2018 season, they ranked 22nd last year. In ’18, the Browns ranked 11th in yards per attempt at 4.6, and last year, they were even better at 4.8, ranking fifth in the NFL.

When Gregg Williams took over for Hue Jackson, and Kitchens inherited the OC job from the dismissed Todd Haley, the Browns became a running team, and they were successful. Mayfield benefited from this and played off the success of the running game.

But when Kitchens took over, and GM John Dorsey hired Todd Monken as offensive coordinator, the Browns got away from what allowed them to win in the second half of the 2018 season.

It didn’t help that Dorsey traded for Odell Beckham Jr. which influenced both the head coach and the OC to emphasize the passing game even more.

When you talk about the dysfunction of the Browns’ franchise, this should be presented as Exhibit A. Stop doing something that worked because the GM wanted to make a big splash, and the head coach and offensive coordinator felt obligated to the GM.

As stated previously, you could see it early in the season last year. Receivers were running downfield patterns with no outlet for Mayfield, and the offensive line wasn’t strong enough to block for those longer routes.

Mayfield ranked 13th in the NFL last year in intended air yards per pass attempt, while Kirk Cousins, running Kevin Stefanski’s offense in Minnesota, ranked 25th.

Although Mayfield ranked 5th in this category in ’18, his completed pass yards per attempt dropped from the year before, and the number of times he was sacked increased from 25 in 2018 (in 14 games) to 40 last season.

To us, it’s because the offensive line couldn’t hold up for the longer routes without the play action. And the play action worked better because the Browns became a running team when Williams and Kitchens took over.

Last season, teams knew Cleveland was going to try to throw first, and run second.

Enter new head coach Kevin Stefanski, and a front office which right now seems like they want to maximize the things this team can do best.

Under Stefanski, Kirk Cousins had his highest passer rating of his career and the lowest interception rate of his career.

He also threw the least passes per game since he became a starter in 2019.

That’s because the Vikings were 4th in rushing attempts (behind Baltimore, San Francisco, and Seattle) and 6th in rushing yards (adding to those teams Dallas and Tennessee).

Coincidentally, the Browns have the second leading rusher in the league in Nick Chubb, and a former NFL rushing champion in Kareem Hunt.

Guess what the Browns are going to do this year?

If Mayfield can’t be at top efficiency this season, then the Browns may need to be on the lookout for a new QB come next year’s draft. It’s all set up for him to succeed.

Browns Dispel Myth They Aren’t Interested In Winning Now.

The Cleveland Browns’ front office erased any doubts that winning would not be a priority in 2020 with a trio of free agent signings on the first day.

With Paul DePodesta and Andrew Berry running things, there were people who felt they would be involved in accumulating assets for a run in 2021, rather than getting to the playoffs next season.

But signing a two starters in TE Austin Hooper and RT Jack Conklin, along with an experienced backup QB who can play if there is an injury in Case Keenum, signals a “go for it” mentality.

The first thought for many is tight end is not the primary need for the Browns, but a right tackle certainly is, and at some point they needed a quarterback.

Hooper and Conklin do continue this front office’s history of signing players coming off their first contracts. Hooper won’t turn 26 years old until November, and has increased his number of receptions, yardage, and touchdowns in every season (4 total years) of his career.

He made the Pro Bowl in each of the last two years.

When Baker Mayfield was at Oklahoma, one of his favorite targets in the red zone, was TE Mark Andrews, now with Baltimore. Andrews caught 22 touchdown throws in Mayfield’s three years with the Sooners.

So, a reliable tight end is important to this quarterback.

We also do not think this means David Njoku’s days are numbered in Cleveland. Remember, Kevin Stefanski used a lot of two tight end sets as offensive coordinator in Minnesota.

Conklin figures to start at right tackle and he will be 26 by the time the regular season starts. He has to be an upgrade over Chris Hubbard, who figures to be released soon.

And his contract is front loaded, meaning he will make less with the team has to reach new deals with both former overall first round picks in Myles Garrett and Baker Mayfield.

Both players are “plug and play” guys, and both are young enough to fit in with the young core of talent the Browns have put together the past five years.

Keenum just turned 32 years old, but is the insurance policy/mentor for Mayfield. He has started 62 games in the NFL, going 27-35 in those starts, and has opened the season as the starter his past three seasons in the NFL.

This approach differs from the past couple of off-seasons where John Dorsey signed players close to 30 on shorter deals. They didn’t go for the big ticket items.

Prior to Dorsey’s arrival, the Browns went for J.C. Tretter and Kevin Zeitler. You’d have to say that was a more successful approach.

The Browns still have holes at left tackle and on the defensive side of the football, most notably at linebacker and safety as well as depth on the line.

We may still see some lesser free agents to address the depth, and of course, there still is a little thing called the NFL Draft to fill some more of the holes.

Right now, we would guess Berry and his crew would look for the left tackle in the first round of the draft, with the rest of the selection process being devoted to the defensive side of the football.

It doesn’t matter if you win the off-season. But signing solid young players who should be able to start right away? Have to say it is difficult to complain about that.

Odd Reasons To Doubt Mayfield

Cleveland sports fans are sometimes a different breed. Especially when it comes to the Cleveland Browns.

The Browns are quite frankly, one of the worst franchises in professional sports when it comes wins and losses. They haven’t made a playoff appearance since 2002, haven’t won a playoff game since 1994, and have had just two winning seasons since then as well.

We know, if you are reading this, that you know this too, but it is a huge reason for the skepticism and doubt surrounding the franchise.

Why would you trust anyone in Berea, especially after 2019, when it looked like the Browns were poised for a playoff berth after a promising second half in 2018, and a trade for Odell Beckham Jr. signaled the organization was all in.

Unfortunately, a brutal early schedule got the team in a bad direction to start, and Freddie Kitchens didn’t know how to handle the situation.

It seems the current angst among Browns’ fans and media alike is directed toward Baker Mayfield, who you may recall was the toast of the town a year ago at this time.

What is weird is the mixed message you get from the Baker detractors.

For example, if Kitchens was as over his head as everyone believes and there was a conflict between the head coach and offensive coordinator Todd Monken, wouldn’t that be reason enough for the second year QB’s struggles?

There is no question we did not see the Mayfield who set an NFL for most touchdown passes as a rookie in 2019. The only statistic he improved upon last season was yards/completion.

He had a lower completion percentage, more interceptions, lower yards passing per contest, and a lower passer rating than his first season in brown and orange.

We still insist it was a different offensive system than in 2018, and this version did not incorporate what Mayfield does well, which was being very accurate.

Too many times in long yardage situations, there did not appear to be a short route available to the quarterback, so he was forced to either take a sack, or force the ball to a receiver that wasn’t open.

Also, in spite of the Pro Football Focus rankings that had the Browns’ offensive line ranked in the middle of the pack, the eye test says they were a below average group, particularly on the outside.

You could see Mayfield being skittish in the pocket if the receiver didn’t break open right away, worried that he was going to take a hit. He needs more confidence in his linemen, particularly his left and right tackles.

This will be addressed before next training camp begins.

The other weird reaction to Mayfield’s second season as Cleveland’s signal caller are the folks who worshiped former GM John Dorsey.

If Dorsey was the man, don’t you trust the player he picked first overall in 2018? He’s the guy who looked at all the passers picked in the first round and decided the best player was Baker Mayfield.

Keep that thought in mind. Dorsey wasn’t a perfect as many made him to be, but he does have an eye for talent, and he chose Mayfield. Shouldn’t that count for something?

The guess here is the Browns have their quarterback of the future and his name is Baker Mayfield.

He had a large dose of reality in his second season and we think with better guidance provided by Kevin Stefanski and new offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt, he will look more like the guy who we saw in 2018.

This is a big season for Mayfield. Our guess is he will be ready.

The Beckham Dilemma

Odell Beckham Jr. might be the most talented wide receiver in the NFL. He has speed, tremendous hands, and was the 12th overall pick in the 2014 NFL Draft.

He has played six years in the league, and in five of them, had over 1000 yards receiving. The only year he didn’t accomplish this milestone was 2017, when he played only four games due to injuries.

He came to the Browns this season in a deal which sent guard Kevin Zeitler, safety Julius Peppers, and a first round draft pick to the New York Giants. Cleveland also received DE Olivier Vernon in the transaction.

Yet, there are plenty of people in Cleveland who wouldn’t mind saying goodbye to the one time All Pro wide out after his first year with the Browns.

Looking at the numbers, there is no question Beckham’s career in on a downward path. He blaming Eli Manning for his declining stats while in New York, but his numbers dropped again playing with Baker Mayfield and the Browns.

His lowest receiving yardage was in 2019 in Cleveland.

After averaging 96 catches and 1374 yards in his first three years in the NFL, the last two complete seasons in the league have yielded an average of 76 receptions and 1044 yards.

That’s quite a drop-off, and you have to wonder did the broken ankle suffered in 2017 with the Giants take that much away from his game?

If so, that’s unfortunate. Since being drafted, only one wide receiver picked that year has caught more passes (Jarvis Landry) and only one has more receiving yards (Tampa Bay’s Mike Evans). That’ the kind of talent we are talking about.

Or is it his dedication to the sport where he gained his fame.

From wearing a watch during the season opener vs. Tennessee, to wearing the wrong visor in a game, to wearing a pair of shoes not permitted by the NFL’s dress code, you have to wonder what Beckham’s primary goal is right now?

And if we were Paul DePodesta, whoever the new GM will be, and Kevin Stefanski, that’s what we need to know.

Does Beckham want to be the best at his position in football, win a Super Bowl, and eventually get a gold jacket, or does he want to be just another famous athlete?

The incident at the National Championship game was just another attempt to make himself the center of attention, which should have gone to the players on LSU’s title team.

If the ankle injury did take its toll on his body, and he can no longer be someone who dominates at the wide receiver spot, then there isn’t much that can be done. The Browns traded a precious first round pick for someone who isn’t even the best wide receiver on the team.

Because right now, that’s Landry, who 83 balls for a career high 1174 yards in 2019.

A dedicated and healthy (and we might say a top fit) Beckham that can catch close to 100 passes in a season can be a huge part of Stefanski’s offense. The player we saw in ’19, who never seemed to be on the same page as the QB, and had to be told where to line up, even in the later stages of the season, well, we don’t know.

That latter guy is more of a distraction than an asset, and if there is one thing the Cleveland Browns don’t need is a player who takes away from the focus of winning football games.

That’s the decision Odell Beckham Jr. needs to make this season, and so does the Browns’ front office.

Cool Down On Criticism Of Stefanski

A lot of people around town, including folks who cover the team are upset with the Cleveland Browns’ choice of former Minnesota offensive coordinator Kevin Stefanski as the new head coach.

Look, regardless of who you wanted to be the coach, it isn’t fair to condemn the pick until Stefanski coaches a few games that count this fall.

Successful head coaches come from all different backgrounds. John Harbaugh was a special teams coach, Andy Reid was an offensive coordinator, Bill Belichick, of course, a defensive coordinator.

Some were hot candidates at the time, others weren’t. The point is you don’t know what you have in a head coach until he’s thrown into the fire and he actually does it.

We understand that’s not what people want to hear, but it’s the truth.

There is no correlation between Super Bowl rings as an assistant to being a successful head coach, nor does success as a coordinator.

We do know than in Stefanski’s only year (2019) as the Vikings’ offensive coordinator, Minnesota ranked 4th in rushing attempts, and 30th in passing attempts. Since the Browns’ best offensive player is Nick Chubb, that seems to be a good fit.

We would also think it means the Browns will try to keep Kareem Hunt too, giving them the best tandem at the position in the NFL.

It sounds simple and trite, but if Stefanski runs an offense suited to the strengths of Baker Mayfield, and hires a defensive coordinator who can design a scheme to stop the run, it says here the Cleveland Browns will have success next season.

Yes, they could use a couple offensive linemen, a linebacker or two, and some safeties, but it isn’t like the team is devoid of talent, and that differs from past coaching hires.

The front office wants “alignment”, meaning everyone is on the same page, so hopefully, the new offensive coordinator is someone who has the same principles as Stefanski, which would be completely different from the 2019 edition of the team.

That doesn’t mean we think all is warm and fuzzy with the hiring process.

It was reported that the coach will be expected to run game plans through the analytic department, which is not troublesome.

We understand the word “analytics” scares some football people, but it is simply checking tendencies and tracking success. Perhaps if Freddie Kitchens listened this past season, he would have used more one running back, two tight end sets, which the Browns were successful with.

However, we cringe at the weekly meetings the day after the game with the owner. A smart man knows what he doesn’t know, and we would bet it won’t be long before Stefanski will tire of this process.

A better solution would be to have Paul DePodesta, whoever is the new general manager, and the coach sit down to discuss any points of importance and have DePodesta explain things to the ownership.

That keeps the alignment intact. No chance for Jimmy Haslam to get friendly with Stefanski and decide the coach is the “guy” and then get rid of the other two.

The pre-1999 owner would do the same thing. Fall in love with a coach. That’s why Ernie Accorsi left the organization.

Let’s give Kevin Stefanski a chance. Don’t let preconceived notions get in the way of evaluating him. Doing so as a fan is no difference than the impetuousness of the man who owns the team.

Has Anyone Thought Maybe It’s Not Kitchens?

With the Cleveland Browns dropping the last two games, they now sit at 6-9 on the season, and a season once filled with expectations (before it started) will end next weekend at Cincinnati.

That means no playoffs once again.

And, because we live in Cleveland, Ohio, there is clamoring for head coach Freddie Kitchens to be fired. Because, fans can’t get enough of the revolving door at the position.

Now, we have no idea if Kitchens will ever be a winning NFL coach, but we do think he should get an opportunity to learn from his mistakes in 2019. We say this because we don’t know that all of the Browns’ problems should fall on the head coach.

Look, the time management decision at the end of the half is indefensible, and so was the comment that he was going to go for it on 4th and 1 from his own 28 yard line with a 6-0 lead after the ill-fated Kareem Hunt option pass.

However, what if Kitchens gets the same opportunity next Sunday and runs the ball to run out the half? Then, he learned from his mistake/experience.

We understand the impatience. The Browns returned to the NFL in 1999 and have made the playoffs once. They haven’t had a winning season since 2007. People want to see a winning football team.

Fans and media alike are clamoring for Ron Rivera, recently fired by the Carolina Panthers. But Rivera spent nine seasons in Carolina, and had three winning seasons. Is he the answer for sure?

Based on that record, we would say not. Former Green Bay coach Mike McCarthy is also mentioned, and he at least has nine playoff appearances and a Super Bowl title on his resume.

However, his running attack has never been effective (yes, we know he had Aaron Rodgers), and the Browns’ best offensive weapon is Nick Chubb.

Our main point here is we, as fans, don’t really know who is to blame for this losing season. It is just assumed that it’s the head coach, and that may not be fair.

It could be a disconnect between the offensive coordinator and the head coach. It could be a more complicated offensive attack than some players can handle, and/or that offensive could be something that doesn’t play into the skill set of the quarterback.

Or it could be Mayfield is a passer who wants to know exactly where is receivers will be, and the receivers the Browns have like to free lance.

Of course, it could also be Kitchens trying to be too much of a friend to the players instead of their boss, or being stubborn in not doing what the front office wants to do.

The only people who really know what happened to the 2019 Cleveland Browns are in the building in Berea. John Dorsey has been very quiet as this season progressed, and perhaps he is doing some self reflection as to what he did wrong in the off-season.

Again, we understand the frustration and lack of patience with the 2019 season, every Browns’ fan can’t wait for a playoff spot.

But you have to trust in the front office that was assembled. Dorsey, Alonzo Highsmith, and Elliot Wolf have been around the game a long time. So, if Kitchens is back next season, it’s because that trio wants him to be back.

And everyone should be okay with that. Obviously, they know a little more about the reasons for another losing season than everyone else.

Evaluating Baker So Far.

A certain media member in town consistently refers to Baker Mayfield as “statistically the worst quarterback in the NFL”. While that is true, you have to remember that the statistic he refers to is really called “passer rating”.

The stat measures basically three things: Completion percentage, average yards per attempt, and how many touchdowns and interceptions you throw. You can pile up incredible numbers in those categories while you are losing a game 28-7.

The point is it is not a true measurement of how great a quarterback is, it does measure how efficient you are as a passer.

The current NFL passing leader is Ryan Tannehill, followed by Kirk Cousins, Drew Brees, Lamar Jackson, and Russell Wilson.

Brees is a future Hall of Famer, while Jackson and Wilson are the favorites for league MVP. The other two?

Cousins was also in the top five a year ago, and the QB who was 6th was Case Keenum, who is no longer a starter in the NFL.

As a frame of reference, the others in the top five last season were Ben Roethlisberger, Andrew Luck, Matt Ryan, and Aaron Rodgers. Four excellent signal callers.

Looking at Mayfield, if his interceptions were cut in half, his passer rating would increase from his current 77.6 to 85.3, moving him from 33rd to 24th in the NFL.

So, we were thinking, rating aside, where would the Browns’ quarterback rank in the league based on just our opinion, devoid of any statistics.

AFC East: Tom Brady, Josh Allen, Sam Darnold, Ryan Fitzpatrick. It would be presumptuous to put Mayfield ahead of Brady, but we’d take him over anyone else, including Allen, who is still more dangerous with his legs than his arm.

AFC North: Jackson, Andy Dalton, Duck Hodges. As we said, Jackson is the co-MVP favorite, and until Roethlisberger retires, we would take him as well.

AFC South: Tannehill, DeShaun Watson, Jacoby Brissett, Gardner Minshew. Watson is spectacular, still wish the Browns had taken him in 2017. Otherwise, we’ll take Mayfield over the rest.

AFC West: Patrick Mahomes, Derek Carr, Philip Rivers, Drew Lock? Rivers is a borderline Canton enshrinee, but has been bad this year, Mahomes is last year’s MVP and a top two or three QB in the game today. We would prefer Mayfield to Carr, Rivers, and Lock right now.

NFC East: Dak Prescott, Carson Wentz, Daniel Jones, Dwayne Haskins Jr. Although Wentz has struggled this year, and we aren’t huge fans of Prescott, we acknowledge they should both rank ahead of the Cleveland QB.

NFC North: Rodgers, Cousins, Mitch Trubisky, Matthew Stafford. The first two have to be ahead, white Trubisky is clearly behind. Stafford puts up a lot of stats, but doesn’t win. For the sake of argument, we’ll take him over Baker.

NFC South: Brees, Ryan, Jameis Winston, Kyle Allen. No question here, Brees and Ryan are ahead of Mayfield.

NFC West: Jimmy Garoppolo, Wilson, Jared Goff, Kyler Murray. We would say only Murray would be behind his former teammate at Oklahoma.

That would rank Mayfield 16th among the quarterbacks in the league, and you can make a case he could be a little higher.

That’s why talk of being a draft bust is ridiculous. Some players start off great, then have a learning curve, and then wind up being great players.

If at this time next year, Mayfield has shown more signs of regression, then perhaps his leash will be shorter. But let’s wait until that is seen.