Austin Hooper on Jim Rome Show: Can’t debate Baker Mayfield’s ‘level of toughness’

Austin Hooper called into the Jim Rome Show on Monday and discussed the Cleveland Browns win while also touching on Baker Mayfield’s toughness and leadership

Austin Hooper came to the defense of Baker Mayfield before the Cleveland Browns played the Baltimore Ravens in Week 14. At that time, he said the entire building believed in No. 6 — and then they went out and won against the leaders of their division.

Despite the win, there’s once again criticism coming out for both Mayfield and head coach Kevin Stefanski. There are even reports that there’s a “disconnect” between the two.

On Monday, Hooper was a guest on the Jim Rome Show and touched on that topic, saying it goes with the territory. In his opinion, the coach and quarterback get all the love when things are clicking and all the blame when it’s not. He then added that he and the team still believe in Baker.

Austin Hooper on Baker Mayfield

He added that “the one thing that’s not up for debate is this man’s level of toughness.” Hooper said just going through life with the injuries Mayfield is dealing with would be hard but he’s gutting it out and taking hits from 300-pound defensive linemen.

After discussing how tough Mayfield is, Hooper then turned to his leadership ability. He said he “couldn’t be happier just based on his leadership and who he is as a man.”

For those who have followed Mayfield, this doesn’t come as a surprise. Since his days at Oklahoma, one of his greatest traits was the way his teammates gravitated to him. As Hooper pointed out, it’s something that’s intangible but in pro sports, it does matter.

Cleveland is set to play the Las Vegas Raiders at home this coming weekend as they hope to continue to chip away at the AFC North lead.