The Cleveland Browns closed the Baker Mayfield chapter of their franchise but it is likely to be referenced for a while. If Mayfield flounders, it will prove the front office (and some fans) right. If Mayfield thrives, especially if the Browns have struggles, it will prove the front office (and some fans) wrong.
With Cleveland and Carolina facing off in Week 1, the next chapter in the team’s and the player’s books will start with each other. While it seems likely Deshaun Watson will play some of 2022, Jacoby Brissett is the odds-on favorite to start that Week 1 matchup and much of the early part of the Browns schedule.
We have touched on Brissett’s history and hopes for Cleveland. He has to be at least as good as Mayfield was in 2021, not hard to do, and the team is betting on Brissett’s limited mistakes to take them steady the ship while/if Watson is out.
There are also a couple of data points that show that Brissett has been much better under pressure than Mayfield and many other QBs:
Baker was also graded by PFF as the 33rd ranked QB vs pressure while Brissett posted the 2nd best grade vs pressure among all QBs https://t.co/PGrYL4Okdw
— Clevta (@ClevTA) July 7, 2022
It is important that those numbers are in percentages as Mayfield has thrown over 700 more passes in his career than Brissett. It is also interesting to note the disparity between how often each was pressured. The Browns offensive line is one of the best in the league while Brissett was under pressure significantly.
With better protection, Brissett won’t be under pressure as much but has shown the ability to handle that pressure at a higher level than Mayfield. Could that change with heightened expectations in Cleveland? Possibly but based on their histories, Brissett is less likely to make poor decisions under pressure.
[listicle id=77126]