ESPN’s Mike Greenberg defends Browns QB Baker Mayfield

ESPN’s Mike Greenberg lays out the facts concerning Browns QB Baker Mayfield, slices doubters to ribbons. 

Although Baker Mayfield of the Cleveland Browns is not able to defend himself from the voracious carnivorous media personalities who make money by ripping him almost daily, ESPN’s Mike Greenberg, co-host of the Get Up! sports talk show, took up Mayfield’s case.

Greenberg was not in any way nasty. He simply took the critics’ complaints about Mayfield and dismantled them one by one. Almost everything the critics say about Mayfield is turning out to be wrong.

The Browns were 1-34 when Mayfield was drafted. He now has a winning lifetime record as an NFL starting quarterback. Four different coaches and four different offensive coordinators. That was not easy. “You might say that guy is working miracles. I would say that guy is Baker Mayfield.”

Mayfield does not have a high ceiling, or so the critics claim. Greeny pointed out that Mayfield had eight games of QBR of 80 or more, which are considered great games. Only Patrick Mahomes and Aaron Rodgers had more.

Mediocre arm strength? He had the highest completion percentage on deep balls 20 yards downfield or more. Greeny could have mentioned, but didn’t, that Baker Mayfield has the deepest pass ever measured by Pro Football Focus, chucking the pigskin over 70 yards in a Hail Mary attempt. How exactly do you throw a football 70 yards with a weak arm? Please explain this, critics.

He can’t beat good teams, right? In his first playoff win, he hung 48 points on the Pittsburgh Steelers, the most they have ever allowed in 62 playoff games.

Mayfield has turned around the worst franchise in American sports. “If all that isn’t enough to shut them up, I ‘m not quite sure what is going to be.”

Well, that is a good question. You can’t ever shut up the critics. Einstein supposedly said, “Two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity. But I’m not sure about the universe.” There will always be additional stupid criticism to offer against Mayfield. It makes some people happy.

With all the negative criticism of Mayfield that grabs national headlines and makes sportscasters famous for saying stupid, negative unfair things, it is refreshing to hear Greeny’s commentary. He did not insult anyone, did not say anything mean or angry. He just laid out the arguments clearly and logically and blew the critics out of the water.

Greeny comes from a family in which his father and several other relatives are attorneys. If Baker Mayfield were being tried in the court of public opinion, Greeny might be a pretty fair advocate.

Case dismissed!