Studs and duds from Cleveland Browns Week 12 victory over Miami
By Dan Justik
Stud: Baker Mayfield
The bye week came at a perfect time for Baker Mayfield, as the second-year quarterback’s performance has improved since the week off. He continued his run of success Sunday against the Dolphins, as he was a big reason for the Browns jumping out to a 28-0 lead in the first half.
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As mentioned a slide before, Mayfield was decisive on Sunday and was not holding on to the ball too long. He was quickly going through his reads and was finding open receivers regularly. At one point, Mayfield completed 13 passes in a row before throwing an interception.
On the day, Mayfield completed 24 of his 34 pass attempts for 327 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. He finished the game with a 118.1 passer rating.
Unlike he was earlier in the season, Mayfield is not forcing throws into nearly impossible windows. Instead he is taking what is being given to him and it is helping the Browns offense keep momentum with their drives.
Although his interception was a poor throw and he would’ve thrown a second interception had their not been a defensive penalty, Mayfield was throwing the football efficiently. But he was still willing to take shots downfield, and it led to big plays for the Browns.
It may have come against a depleted secondary, but Mayfield’s performance Sunday should build even more confidence for the rest of the season. Now that he is finding a rhythm with all of the receivers, the passing attack may have finally found its footing.