Should Kevin Stefanski play it safe in preseason with Baker Mayfield?

The Rams won’t play their QB a snap in preseason despite just joining the team. Could the Browns take a similar route to protect their most important player?

Baker Mayfield is the Cleveland Browns most important player for 2021 and beyond. The biggest goal from 2020 was not only to be successful on the field but to identify whether Mayfield could prove on the field that he was the team’s franchise player.

Mayfield succeeded in doing so, and so much more.

Now, going into 2021, the Browns biggest goal is to win the Super Bowl. While every team will note that goal, Cleveland has a real chance to make it happen. The team can build on a winning season last year that included two playoff games and a loaded roster.

Still, Mayfield is the most important player for the team to reach their goals as is every top-flight quarterback. The Los Angeles Rams are one of the teams with a top-flight quarterback and a team with Super Bowl aspirations. Their head coach, Sean McVay, made it clear that their quarterback will not be seeing the field in the preseason:

 

It is an interesting decision by McVay. While Stafford is an experienced veteran, the Rams acquired their quarterback this offseason in a trade. Stafford won’t have game-like situations to get used to his teammates and new offense. Instead, McVay is leading with caution believing that a healthy Stafford for a new 17 game schedule is more important than any work that can get done in the preseason.

Should Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski take a similar tact with Mayfield? While McVay has taken it to the extreme, Stefanski can still be cautious with his quarterback while letting him get some time on the field. Unlike Stafford, Mayfield has a year of experience with this offense and almost all of his offensive teammates. In that way, the Browns quarterback is ahead of his Rams counterpart.

There is no right answer but it will be interesting how the Browns look at the preseason now that they are a quality team. With a 17 game regular season, the Browns have plans of playing 20 or 21 games this season. McVay is being overly cautious with his most important player, how cautious will Stefanski be with his?