5 Biggest challenges Cleveland Browns face in 2020
By Randy Gurzi
2. Helping Baker grow
As a rookie, Baker Mayfield was nothing short of fantastic. He took the league by storm as he entered a Thursday Night Football game against the New York Jets and led the team to a come-from-behind victory. It wasn’t just any victory either as it ended a losing streak that had spanned 635 days — and opened up victory fridges around Cleveland which gave fans free Bud Light.
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He was also integral to their 5-3 finish to the season which included an unexpected win over the Atlanta Falcons at home. In all, Mayfield was 6-7 as a starter but the team was 7-7 in the games he played in. He finished with a team rookie record of 3,725 yards passing and an NFL record 27 touchdown passes by a rookie.
Following that success, Mayfield was expected to do great things in 2019. That didn’t happen as he and the Browns were 6-10 while he saw his completion percentage drop from 63.8 as a rookie to 59.4 in year two. Mayfield was also more reckless with the ball, throwing 21 interceptions on the season while throwing five fewer touchdowns than he had as a rookie.
This season, the Browns need to make sure to do all they can to help Mayfield grow. There’s a sense that Freddie Kitchens might not have had the team fully focused at times and it’s apparent that Mayfield needs a coach who can push him to be better.
Kevin Stefanski proved last season that he can help a quarterback improve. His play-calling allowed Kirk Cousins to have one of his best seasons as a pro and if he could do the same for Baker, 2020 could be a big season.