Cleveland Browns: Baker Mayfield refinding his underdog mentality?
By Dan Justik
The Cleveland Browns have floundered in expectations early in the season, including Baker Mayfield. But Mayfield may be reigniting the underdog flame.
There was plenty of hype surrounding the Cleveland Browns and quarterback Baker Mayfield entering the 2019 regular season. But after the first the first three games, it is the doubters who are currently taking victory laps.
After a 1-2 start to the season and massive offensive struggles, there have not been many positives for the Browns. There are several issues for the entire team, and it could lead to a rough start during the first half of the season. The two people mostly blamed for the Browns early struggles have been Mayfield and head coach Freddie Kitchens.
Despite Mayfield being considered a potential MVP candidate, he has struggled to get the ball moving downfield. When forced to hold onto the ball, he has been unable to find windows to throw into, causing him to scramble out of the pocket and/or get sacked.
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His early season struggles has made people believe the hype for the second-year quarterback happened too soon. Some people, including former NFL head coach Rex Ryan, believes that Mayfield is overrated. Ryan said Mayfield is only a one-read quarterback and he inferred Mayfield is the reason why the Browns offense has struggled.
Ryan’s comments generated a response from Mayfield, who quoted his head coach, saying Ryan doesn’t matter because he does not wear orange and brown. He took it a step further, saying “Ryan doesn’t have any colors right now for a reason.”
It is clear Mayfield is starting to hear the noise about his performance early in the season, which is a welcomed sign for Browns fans. Mayfield has thrived when people have doubted him, which has helped become the player he is now. Because of all the noise about his play, Mayfield may be refinding his underdog mentality.
On Friday night, Mayfield posted a photo on Instagram with the caption, “Just some undersized Walk On… Keep that same energy.” Since entering college, Mayfield was not expected to perform at a high level because of his size and not receiving any major scholarship offers out of high school. But he proved all those people wrong by winning the Heisman Trophy and then being selected No. 1 overall in the 2018 NFL Draft.
Mayfield has also performed at an extremely high level when he goes against a coach, player, or teams who have downgraded his abilities. When he has a chip on his shoulder, Mayfield steps up and typically puts together stellar performances.
It is clear Mayfield is feeling the chip on his shoulder building up quickly. Because of that pressure, Mayfield may want to go back to the mentality that helped him get to this point in his career. And that typically results in the best Mayfield.
Next. Cleveland Browns Week 4 predictions vs. Ravens. dark
The Browns will be playing in a key early season game against the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday. In order to return home to Cleveland with a victory, the Browns will need Mayfield to make plays. And if he feels like the underdog, it could end up being a good result for Cleveland.