Year two in system for Baker Mayfield may be better than Aaron Rodgers in year one

Aaron Rodgers, Baker Mayfield, and Interceptions

The place where Rodgers really shines is interceptions or lack of them.

The guy only threw four of them in his first year with LaFleur. That’s truly insanely good and really shows that Rodgers is a superstar. Mayfield threw eight in year one with Stefanski and Van Pelt.

But wait just a minute.  t’s not that simple.

Mayfield, you see, has been getting better and better. You can see this in the list below which covers the dysfunctional Freddie Kitchens plus Todd Monken era. Note that Mayfield threw only one pick in the last half of 2020, which is starting to get into Aaron Rodgers territory for a low INT rate.

However, let me throw some Mayfield stats at you that might surprise you.

First 8 games 2019:        Mayfield threw 12 picks  (Kitchens/Monken)

Second 8 games 2019    Mayfield threw   9 picks

First 8 games 2020:        Mayfield threw   7 picks (Stefanski/Van Pelt)

Second 8 games 2020:   Mayfield threw   1 pick

Mayfield is trending better. No one is saying that Mayfield is as good as Aaron Rodgers, but how can people think that he is not getting any better and he will never improve under Stefanski and Van Pelt?

Nobody knows what Baker Mayfield would do in the second year with the same coach and same offensive coordinator, because that has never happened before. The Browns have had to blow it up every year of the young quarterback’s career.  Until now.

I don’t know that this business of one INT per eight games is sustainable, but at least we should recognize he is trending in the right direction.

Another issue that needs to be raised is why the Browns should be willing to give away multiple first-round draft picks for the privilege of paying someone upwards of $40 million dollars. Does Aaron Rodgers have unlimited value?