Cleveland Browns: 3 improvements needed Thursday night vs. Bengals

No more double-clutching from Baker Mayfield

The biggest improvement from the Browns falls squarely on the shoulders of the man under-center in Baker Mayfield. He looked decent in the first half and posted solid numbers as the offense had at least a bit of rhythm to it, but as the game got away, so did Mayfield’s confidence. In a shocking turn of events, it appears Mayfield, the man known for his confidence, now has little.

As a result of this lack of confidence, it seems as though Mayfield is overthinking every read and double-clutching every throw he makes before bailing and throwing on the run. While this may sound counter-productive, the Browns need Mayfield to get back to his gunslinger ways and just step up into the pocket and let it rip.

This is what made Mayfield special in 2018. While he made some bad throws as a rookie, he also made some absolutely stunning throws into tight windows as well. Mayfield is now hesitant to make these types of throws as he is seemingly still recovering from the Freddie Kitchens era of bad coaching a year ago.

Good news is it is only Week 2 for Mayfield in a system he has never played in before. Instead of shooting off hot takes, re-visit his performances after Week 4 when we have a good sample size and see if he is getting better. One area Mayfield can start to win back the hearts of fans is by showing he still has the swagger to rifle passes down the field and into tight windows. Stop overthinking and double-clutching, and let it rip.