Cleveland Browns surprises and disappointments from first quarter of 2019

Disappointment – Baker Mayfield

After excelling as a rookie quarterback, Baker Mayfield was expected to take a leap as a second-year player. With Freddie Kitchens remaining the play-caller, Mayfield being comfortable in the offense was going to help him make plays.

Instead, Mayfield has struggled for a large part of the season and does not seem confident in the pocket. If he is not getting the ball out quickly, Mayfield has happy feet in the pocket, drifts away from his throws, leading to inaccurate throws.

Mayfield has completed only 59 percent of his throws for 1,196 yards, four touchdowns, and six interceptions for a passer rating of 77.2. He has also been sacked 12 times, with some of those sacks being the fault of Mayfield.

The Browns relying on deep shots forced Mayfield to sit in the pocket. And instead of standing tall and stepping up, Mayfield scrambled out of the pocket, which limited his options to throw to. His tendency to scramble right also led to multiple sacks that could have been avoided.

Cleveland made adjustments to their offense against the Ravens Week 4 and Mayfield thrived. They were getting the ball out of Mayfield’s hand and were creating extra time in the pocket using play-action.

Mayfield was a big reason for the offensive struggles at the start of the season. But now that he knows where he needs to improve, he could return to being the gunslinger he was last season. And he could be even more motivated to play well after his slow start to the season.