The market for Baker Mayfield’s services appears to be as nonexistent as possible.
The Carolina Panthers have long been considered one of the top potential landing spots for the embattled former Cleveland Browns starting quarterback. They didn’t get what they were hoping for out of Sam Darnold or Cam Newton and are in need of some stability at the spot. It was thought that, given how little the Browns are asking for Mayfield right now, Carolina might roll the dice on Baker and hope he can find his rhythm in a new home.
However, according to NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport, the Panthers do not appear interested in trading for Mayfield at this time.
“The Panthers are not expected to trade for Browns QB Baker Mayfield prior to the first round of the NFL Draft, sources say, if they do it at all. Thursday has to play out first before any other options are considered. Carolina picks No. 6,” Rapoport wrote.
The Panthers have an interesting quarterback field to choose from in the 2022 NFL Draft, including Malik Willis and Kenny Pickett. They’ve clearly done their homework on the available rookies and appear to be interested in rolling the dice on one of them as the future face of the franchise rather than risk it on Mayfield, who has been pretty disgruntled in recent years with Cleveland.
It also probably doesn’t help that unnamed sources told ESPN that the Browns wanted to replace Mayfield with “an adult” and, after they traded for Deshaun Watson, Mayfield went public about how disrespected he felt by the franchise and the situation.
Panthers wide receiver Robbie Anderson has to be happy with the report. He expressed some displeasure with the previous reports that the team might trade for Mayfield.
It’s still possible that an NFL team doesn’t get the chance to draft the quarterback they want on draft night and ends up pulling the trigger on a trade for Mayfield instead. Some have speculated that the Seattle Seahawks also make a logical destination for him.
About Sean Keeley
Along with writing for Awful Announcing and The Comeback, Sean is the Managing Editor for Comeback Media. Previously, he created the Syracuse blog Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician and wrote 'How To Grow An Orange: The Right Way to Brainwash Your Child Into Rooting for Syracuse.' He has also written non-Syracuse-related things for SB Nation, Curbed, and other outlets. He currently lives in Seattle where he is complaining about bagels. Send tips/comments/complaints to sean@thecomeback.com.