To say that Baker Mayfield and Kevin Stefanski are polarizing figures among Cleveland Browns fans wouldn't tell half the story. However, recency bias and hindsight have made some appreciate Mayfield more now that he's not playing for the team.
As for Stefanski, it's the other way around.
As tough as Week 8 was for Todd Monken's team, some fans still had a reason to smile. While the Browns were getting manhandled in Pittsburgh, Mayfield and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers were beating Stefanski's Atlanta Falcons in historic fashion.
The Bucs didn't complete a single pass against the Falcons, becoming the first team since the 1974 Buffalo Bills to win a game despite not completing a pass. In fact, they finished the game with negative-2 net passing yards because of a late sack.
Baker Mayfield got a hilarious last laugh over Kevin Stefanski in a duel of former Browns
The Bucs and Falcons played in a monsoon, and Falcons quarterback Michael Penix Jr. couldn't get anything going all day. He completed more passes to Bucs defenders (4) than the Buccaneers even attempted (3). Todd Bowles' team set a new franchise record with 324 rushing yards, led by Bucky Irving's 170 yards.
For Stefanski, losing a game in which the opposing quarterback passed for zero yards should be a new low. The so-called offensive guru couldn't keep the offense moving despite having one of the best and most dynamic running backs in football in Bijan Robinson.
Things didn't end well between Mayfield and Stefanski. The former No. 1 pick revealed in the offseason that the coach didn't even reach out to him after the Browns traded him, and he was clearly looking forward to this matchup.
Of course, he probably didn't envision this type of game. Mayfield, despite his flaws, is someone who will always do whatever it takes to win. He didn't hesitate to put his body on the line, block for his runners, and keep handing the ball off — even if that meant posting one of the most ridiculous statistical games of his career.
Playing Monday morning quarterback is easy, and while it's pretty clear that the Browns did Mayfield wrong, he probably wasn't the right guy to lead this team. As for Stefanski, he had some good moments, but he might have been the most overrated coach in the league over the past decade.
The Browns didn't win in Week 8, and it wasn't a fun game to watch at all.
Fortunately, it looks like someone had a worse day than the Browns did, so there's that.
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