If anyone told you they know for sure the end result of the relationship between the Cleveland Browns and Baker Mayfield, they most likely would be lying to you. Even if that person was Jimmy Haslam, Andrew Berry, Kevin Stefanski or Mayfield himself.
The former top overall pick made that clear during his podcast appearance.
Since then, the NFL draft has come and gone with Mayfield still on the Browns 90-man roster. An alleged disagreement about how much of the quarterback’s salary Cleveland would pay may have halted a trade to the Carolina Panthers on day two of the draft.
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, by way of Bleacher Report’s transcribing, isn’t ready to close the books on the Panthers acquiring the Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback:
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler said Sunday on SportsCenter. “They would like somebody else; that’s why the Baker Mayfield situation, Jimmy Garoppolo might not be completely dead at this point. And so it certainly seems [Sam Darnold] is the favorite to start. They know Matt Corral is a bit of a project, a little like Malik Willis, because of the offense he came from in Ole Miss.
As noted, Garoppolo is the other name on the market but A) there have been reports that Trey Lance isn’t ready to start and B) his cap is $8 million more than Mayfield’s and C) he would likely cost a lot more in a trade.
That could lead Carolina back to conversations with Berry. Matt Rhule’s tenure as head coach has been a struggle and relying on a rookie coming out of a simplistic system or a quarterback who has failed throughout his NFL career is not in his best interest.
The Seattle Seahawks, according to their head coach, are unlikely to make a trade for another quarterback.
The Mayfield saga doesn’t seem to have an end date currently but, perhaps, the Panthers, or another team, will ramp up pursuit after mandatory minicamps.