Baker Mayfield Trade Option No. 1 – Carolina Panthers
There have been multiple rumors that the Carolina Panthers and Cleveland Browns have been close to a deal involving Baker Mayfield since the NFL draft. Everything I have seen points to Andrew Berry not closing the deal based on the amount of salary he is willing to pick up in 2022.
This feels like a simple game of chess, and unfortunately, the Browns are not in the driver’s seat. The Panthers appear to have interest, but they do have Sam Darnold and now Matt Corral who they drafted in Round 3 of the 2022 draft.
The Panthers don’t appear satisfied with either as their starter next season, but they also don’t want to overpay. Should they make a trade, they would have the first and third overall pick from the 2018 draft in Mayfield and Darnold.
With plenty of cap and not wanting to go into a full rebuild, I still think this deal gets done in the next month. The Panthers will wait for Berry to pony up paying at least half of the $18.6 million in 2022, but they will want him in Carolina before the start of minicamp.
Don’t expect much in return. A fifth or sixth-round pick would be great but getting Mayfield out of Cleveland is what’s most important.
I’m not saying I blame him for being upset, but the Browns have enough distractions on their roster right now, they certainly don’t need another.