1a. I’m not sure what the future holds for Baker Mayfield. Probably more Progressive commercials—he’s very good in them. I could see him as part of an reboot, that seems like the kind of not-very-good show that’s due for a comeback on one of the streaming services. Really, any kind of project with Robert Wuhl. It seems like those two would get along.
But as for what’s happening on the field, it might be a little instructive to go back to this time last year. Through Week 11 of the 2020 season, Mayfield was coming off a run of bad performances in bad-weather games, and there were plenty of folks (myself included) who were one-foot-out on him. But then he turned it on down the stretch, posting a 103.4 passer rating, including an 11-to-1 TD/INT ratio, over the last six games of the season (and that includes an outlier against the Jets when half of Cleveland’s roster was unavailable due to COVID-19 protocols).
Unlike 2020, injuries have been an obvious issue for Mayfield this season, as has the defense’s sporadic struggles. He might always be a little more dependent on game-flow, needing the Browns’ full playbook at his disposal, than most quarterbacks (you could—and should—say the same thing about Ryan Tannehill), and there will likely always be remorse in Cleveland about passing on Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson. But Mayfield still has time to salvage his season, starting with Sunday night in Baltimore against a Ravens defense that has been prone to coverage gaffes this year.
The Browns might not have seen enough to make a long-term commitment to Mayfield, but he has a chance to save his season and put the Browns back in the playoffs for a second year in a row.
1b. Apologies to any diehards out there. I admit, I watched a couple episodes over the years. It was pretty O.K. sometimes.
