This was Baker Mayfield’s best game with the Cleveland Browns
The Cleveland Browns maestro was in full control of the offense
It has been a long time coming but the Cleveland Browns actually used all of their talents and nearly played a complete game. That effort was led by quarterback Baker Mayfield who played the best game of his short career.
When you look at the stat sheet it doesn’t look like his best game but the number people should be paying attention to is the one on the scoreboard, 49 points are the most the Browns have scored with Mayfield as the starter.
He didn’t have flashy numbers, 19 completions on 30 attempts for 165 yards and two touchdowns. Especially compared to his counterpart, Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott. who passed for over 500 yards in a comeback effort. The most important number is zero which is how many turnovers Mayfield had.
The passing yards are low because Cleveland had a lot of short fields because of turnovers by the Cowboys and the completion percentage is a little low because he was throwing the ball away when there was nothing there. But Mayfield had steady feet in the pocket even when there was pressure which has been a problem for him.
The entire offensive line was great Sunday as the Browns rushed for over 300 yards but they had a few break downs in pass protection. Mayfield was sacked twice but he held onto the ball and probably avoided a few other sacks by throwing the ball away.
There is no doubting Mayfield’s talent but there is a lot of other talented players on Cleveland’s offense and it can be challenging getting them all involved. Mayfield and head coach Kevin Stefanski did terrific getting everybody into the offensive gameplan as Odell Beckham Jr. scored three touchdowns (also a high with the Browns) and Jarvis Landry threw a touchdown.
The game ended up being too close for comfort but it wasn’t really because of the offense who actually put the game away with a 50 yard reverse to Beckham. That is what Browns fans have wanted to see from Mayfield, just don’t be the reason we lose the game.
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His stats will come but this is the type of performance Mayfield needs to focus on being. Don’t force anything, let the game to you, and let your playmakers make plays. This game showed growth which is a great sign for a young quarterback.