Another claim Browns will move on from Baker Mayfield with loss surfaces

Another talking head with a baseless take on Baker Mayfield

ESPN’s First Take is a hotbed for hot takes, and that’s exactly what happened on New Year’s Day. Former NFL linebackers Bart Scott (the same Bart Scott who hid in a Berea bathroom to avoid signing with the Browns) and Rob Ninkovich discussed the Cleveland Browns Week 17 matchup with the Pittsburgh Steelers, with Ninkovich going as far as to say the Browns will say “see ya later” to Mayfield if the team loses this game and fails to make the playoffs. And Scott agreed with him!

The last time a hot take artist claimed the Browns were giving Mayfield an ultimatum (Colin Cowherd prior to Cleveland’s huge Week 13 victory over the Tennessee Titans), he promptly went out and had arguably the best game of his NFL career.

To be fair, last week’s loss to the New York Jets was incredibly disappointing, and losing this week against Pittsburgh, when they are starting Mason Rudolph and holding out many key veterans, would be a terrible way to end the season and miss the playoffs. However, there were legitimate reasons that led to last week’s loss, and the Browns aren’t exactly set up great this week either.

The fact of the matter is that the Browns should have beaten the Jets last week. And if not for a Mayfield fumble and the officials robbing Myles Garrett of a strip-sack-turned-touchdown, perhaps they would have. But the team was starting third-stringers at left tackle and right guard, were without two linebackers, including the defense’s signal-caller, and all four top wide recievers landed on the COVID-19 reserve list less than 24 hours before kickoff.

Mayfield was throwing to two practice squad players in Derrick Willies and Ja’Marcus Bradley, and Marvin Hall, a waiver claim less than three weeks prior.