5 Reasons Baker Mayfield will be 2021 NFL Most Valuable Player
By Colin Damms
He might not be the favorite, but here are 5 reasons why Cleveland Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield will be the 2021 NFL MVP.
In the Fall of 2018 Baker Mayfield took the hardest job in football, starting quarterback for the Cleveland Browns. It was a job that had seen 29 players try and fail to fill before the 2018 No. 1 overall pick came in for a hurt Tyrod Taylor against the Jets Week 3 of his rookie season.
And though it was just a moment, all of Browns nation sensed he was something special when he led a comeback effort to get the team’s first win in nearly two years. Mayfield took the job by the scruff of the neck, and despite a sophomore slump under Freddie Kitchens he found a new level to his game under Kevin Stefanski. He will now go into a new season with the same head coach as the previous season for the first time in his NFL career, and of all the reasons to believe the hype about the Browns Mayfield is one of the biggest.
We’re taking that hype to the next level, with 5 reasons why Cleveland’s QB1 will be the NFL MVP for the 2021 season.
5. Kevin Stefanski
The Cleveland Browns haven’t just finally found a QB1, they’ve finally found a head coach. Kevin Stefanski’s debut season in Cleveland had every excuse to be derailed by week 17, but Stefanski and staff simply refused to stray from their target of making the playoffs. Despite the injuries, early struggles, and Covid-19 effects Baker Mayfield and company evolved into one of the most efficient offenses in football.
Mayfield and Stefanski’s relationship is underlined by the fact that Stefanski wanted to work with Mayfield since first interviewing for the job at the end of the 2018 season. Despite horrendous outings against the Ravens and Steelers in the first half of the season, both Stefanski and Mayfield recovered to put in brilliant offensive performances against those same hated rivals down the stretch.
His play calling is well suited to Mayfield’s strengths, and the growth that he showed down the stretch last season was a very positive indicator of their relationship.