The 2022 NFL Draft is just about here and one of the big questions is whether or not we might see a draft-day trade for Cleveland Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield. The disgruntled former starter is looking for a chance to prove himself after he demanded a trade and the team instead traded for Deshaun Watson.
FS1′s Shannon Sharpe made it clear on Tuesday’s “Undisputed” that he doesn’t think anyone will want to trade for Baker because no one even seems willing to part with low draft picks for the vocal quarterback.
“Baker Mayfield would still be the quarterback if…what a lot of people said Baker Mayfield was going be [was true], which is a franchise-altering quarterback,” said Sharpe. “In the NFL, you play well you have a job, you keep a job. Baker Mayfield didn’t play well.”
“Nobody willing to trade a fifth-round pick? You won’t give up a fifth, sixth, or seventh-rounder?… Don’t nobody want [Baker Mayfield]. It’s hard, but it’s true. Sad, but fair.”
While the Carolina Panthers and Seattle Seahawks have been rumored to be potential landing spots for Mayfield, the Panthers have reportedly decided not to make a move for him and the Seahawks have been relatively quiet on the opportunity as well. Both teams might just focus on potentially drafting a quarterback of the future rather than taking a chance on Mayfield, who hasn’t always been easy to deal with.
Sharpe, however, made it clear that he doesn’t see much of a future in the NFL for Mayfield no matter what happens, and what happened with Odell Beckham is an example of why.
“The Cleveland Browns have realized as long as it’s ideal, as long as Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt are running the air out of the ball and the defense is lights out, Baker is our guy,” Sharpe says. “But if we get into a scoring match, a shootout, we need a quarterback that can do that.
“If the conditions are perfect, Baker Mayfield is your guy. When the conditions aren’t perfect, Baker’s not your guy. And I know this — When Odell [Beckham] got free of Baker, he came to L.A. and won a Super Bowl.”
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.