The Legend of Mr Mayfield
How a player destined to revive a floundering franchise dipped down to the depths of hell rose to the top again to be one of the most beloved players the sport has ever seen.
Every major media pundit had reached their verdict on Baker Mayfield after the flames he began to spark went out in the blink of an eye. Baker was finished. Mayfield was a former number one overall pick. A cocky gunslinger who used hate to fuel his elite play. He wanted to be the villain all along. Planting his school’s flag in the center of the field when facing rivals back in college, talking the talk, and walking the walk each and every week. At first Baker was a measly walk-on. An afterthought. He was buried in Texas Tech’s depth chart and decided he needed to leave in order to find some greener grass. That greener grass was in Oklahoma. A place where the young quarterback would have to sit out a year given the rules on transfer eligibility were far more stringent back in 2014. The aftermath of Mayfield’s decision was legendary. A dynamite stretch in which Baker led the Big 12 in completion percentage for three straight seasons, passing yards for two of his three seasons, and average depth of target for all three seasons. A stretch that saw the first ever walk-on hoist a heisman trophy. Along with these accomplishments came immense fame and pressure after he became the first overall pick in 2018.
In his first season as a Cleveland Brown, Mayfield entered the history books with the most passing touchdowns a rookie has ever thrown (27) with a remarkable 93.7 passer rating. Pundits were raving about the poise Baker possessed on such an abominable team. It wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows though considering there was a problem he had with turning the ball over. This reared its ugly head in year two where Baker threw almost as many interceptions as he did touchdowns, 22 TDs to 21 INTs. The following season the Cleveland Browns would bounce back big time as the interception issue, the elephant in the room, ceased to exist. In 2020 the Browns went to the playoffs and came awfully close to taking down the Chiefs, but they got robbed by a missed spearing call on Chiefs safety Daniel Sorenson converting a would-be touchdown into a touchback. A seven point swing and a loss of possession that was MONUMENTAL in a game that concluded in a Chiefs five point victory. After heartbreak how would the budding young QB respond the next year? He was abysmal. A shoulder injury significantly hampered his play and once again the interception issue returned. Instead of letting Baker get healthy Cleveland decided they had seen enough. This is when the legend began.
Following a year of regression in 2021 the faces of sports media converged on Baker and ripped him to shreds. They gave little to no context along with fixating on the fact that Mayfield had led the league in interceptions over the course of his four years with Cleveland. Stephen A. Smith was calling for his retirement. Many had declared they knew he’d be a bust, including myself, and Baker went from the highest of highs to the Carolina Panthers. A place in which Mayfield had nothing to work with. No coaching, no talent, nothing. After six unfruitful starts the Panthers decided to part ways with him. They had seen enough. Then just a few weeks later came a phone call from the LA Rams. Every quarterback on their active roster as well as their practice squad had gone down. They had no other option than giving Mayfield a shot. Just days before a primetime matchup with the Raiders, the Rams brought in Mayfield and had no other option than to throw him into the fire. The Rams were missing their entire receiving core leaving Ben Skrowonek and Tutu Atwell to lead the way. These two guys are rotational receivers. Not ones you want to lean on for long drives. Mayfield didn’t even know the playbook in the slightest. His play was admirable and gritty all night until the final two minutes of the game. Then came the 98 yard drive.
Down six points in potentially one of the most meaningless primetime games of all time the Rams were pinned up against their own endzone. 1:45 left on the clock with no real hope, Baker lit the flame. He drove them down, scored, and a positive narrative began to form. It seemed like an impossibility at one point. People didn’t believe he was a starter, but he took the first step. He gained some respect.
The following season Baker would become somewhat of a commodity after his gutsy performance. The Buccaneers were moving off of Tom Brady’s somewhat fairytale end to his career and were looking for anything to keep the ship afloat after things began to trend in the wrong direction. Baker took the reins and definitely outperformed expectations. Baker won the division behind an offense that just moved the needle. Largely composed of checkdowns, ball control, and a piss poor rushing attack courtesy of Raachad White. Dave Canales had found a recipe for Mayfield. They took down the NFC South, but I as well as many others had some skepticism around the QB. I coined the nickname “Faker Mayfield" for him as I didn’t believe he was a true winning QB at the NFL level. Tampa that year only on occasion took deep shots, which was one of the main factors in not believing a career resurgence was imminent.
After that year and Dave Canales’ magic with Mayfield he became the top head coach candidate and was snatched up by Carolina. New Coordinator for Mayfield. No problem. Baker once again took down the NFC South and had his best year yet. Under Liam Cohen he became uber efficient, rarely turning the football over. When he did it was clear that the short term memory trait people look for in quarterbacks was present. There was a new component however to Tampa’s offensive attack. Bucky Irving. A fourth round running back whose name was called upon after the first five weeks of the 2024 season. He wasn’t just a catalyst, he was dominant. A potent receiver and a tough runner who routinely ran through tackles. When he put his foot in the ground his ability to cut was among the best in the league instantly. Behind Bucky’s 1,500 all purpose yards Mayfield found a comfort that was familiar to his early days back in Cleveland. The Browns were powered by their dynamic one two punch of downhill runners spearheaded by Nick Chubb.
Looking at Mayfield today the story just continues to get better. You see something that wasn’t mentioned earlier, but is crucial to the story is that the Buccaneers were battered all season in 2024 along their offense. Chris Godwin had an emergent breakout season that was halted by a brutal broken leg in a blowout loss. Evans also was down. Cade Otton was now needed in Tampa. The response Mayfield had for injuries was inspiring. Laying his body on the line, getting blasted in the ribs routinely, and reshaping his model for success as all pieces who seemed as if they’d be incongruent took on larger roles than expected. I converted. This takeover went way further than just being the guy. He became a top 5-7 guy. Someone who wasn’t just a franchise QB, but the franchise.
Bucs need a drive late in the fourth. He always heeds the call. Time and time again. Making the improbable look easy. Game winning drive after game winning drive. A fan favorite. The best redemption story in modern history. He went from hated to beloved. From castaway to legend. Things are only looking up. At just thirty years of age Baker has all the time in the world to make his tumultuous stretch of being a backup seem like a past life. No QB has the heart of Baker. It’s the antithesis of the Grinch’s heart. He’ll scrape, fight, and claw through gruesome ailments stunning viewers and gaining fans. The world owes this man an apology. He’s now reasonably high up in MVP odds. There would be no bigger award than winning MVP for Mayfield. From the depths of hell to the mountain’s peak. There’s no way Baker would’ve wanted the whole journey any other way. An ever growing chip on his shoulder. He's all in on himself.
