Why did Browns play Baker Mayfield Sunday?
By Joel W. Cade
Baker Mayfield is one of the toughest players in the NFL. He has nothing to prove when it comes to that, so why was he playing on Sunday?
The Cleveland Browns scored a pyrrhic victory on Sunday. Yes, they won. But at what cost did they win?
The Detriot Lions are a better team than their record. It took the longest field goal in NFL history for the Baltimore Ravens to beat them. Only a missed field goal in overtime prevented the Lions from beating the Pittsburgh Steelers.
So, yes, this is a better team than the record indicates. But is a victory over a team that was 0-8-1 heading into the game worth risking your already injured starting quarterback?
It was apparent from the outset that quarterback Baker Mayfield’s injured shoulder, left knee, right knee and left foot were preventing him from throwing the ball accurately. His early passes were sailing high, leading to an interception early. Due to these injuries, his accuracy was not that of a healthy Baker.
As I wrote about earlier, head coach Kevin Stefanski is in a sophomore slump. When he was hired, he had one year’s experience as an offensive coordinator. He had no experience has a head coach. This is not a reason to be down on Stefanksi.
But it is a reason to recognize there will be growing pains. Last season, he won the NFL coach of the year for his work with the Browns. It was an award he deserved but that does not mean he is a finished product. This year, Stefanski is taking his lumps.
One of the lumps he’s taking is learning how to manage the team’s most important position. Playing an injured quarterback puts not only the quarterback at risk, but also the future of the entire franchise. Putting Mayfield out there to start puts the team in a bad position because the most important position on the field is already compromised.
But the worst decision by Stefanski on Sunday was to leave Baker out there to get more beat up. The result was more injuries to Baker who was seen visibly limping toward the end of the game. Even then, Stefanski still trotted Baker out there to finish the game. Why?