No. 30: Baker Mayfield, Cleveland Browns
The Cleveland Browns also assembled an impressive offensive line, and when coupled with their stable of running backs, Stefanski was able to dial up shot plays downfield out of heavy personnel packages.
That put Mayfield in advantageous situations, and the result was the kind of season Browns fans were hoping for when the organization drafted him first overall in the 2018 NFL draft. Mayfield completed 62.8% of his passes for 3,563 yards and 26 touchdowns against just eight interceptions, and the Browns won a playoff game for the first time in over 20 years.
In 2020, Baker Mayfield thrived in Kevin Stefanski’s system. Stefanski carried over the scheme he ran with the Minnesota Vikings as offensive coordinator. With Mayfield’s mobility factor, Stefanski took advantage with a heavy play-action attack and motion pre-snap with fakes and bootlegs to open up shots downfield. Like the system Mayfield played in at Oklahoma under Lincoln Riley, the running game sets up the passing attack-RPO and play-action. Stefanski stayed with the wide zone concepts implemented by the Vikings and utilized many with the Browns. Similar to the wide zone-blocking used for Dalvin Cook with Minnesota, Stefanski used with Nick Chubb in Cleveland.
All worked to build a quarterback-friendly system and helped elevate Baker Mayfield in 2020. With their signal-caller, the Browns are poised to once again contend for the AFC North title and make a splash in the playoffs.