The Cleveland Browns traded Baker Mayfield to the Carolina Panthers this offseason after acquiring Deshaun Watson.
Their decision to dump Mayfield in favor of Watson, who at the time was facing countless sexual misconduct allegations, drew mixed reactions from fans and observers alike.
On Monday, word came down that Watson would likely face a six-game suspension at the beginning of the 2022-23 season.
Understandably the media decided to ask Mayfield how he felt about everything that had transpired with his replacement.
“That honestly is none of my business,” Mayfield replied.
“I don’t play against the other quarterback [as much of] a cliche [thing] as that is to say. But, it’s the truth. When it comes down to it, I’m gameplanning against their defense … trying to help this team win. That’s my mindset going into it. But I’m not focused on Week 1 right now.”
Watson got the richest contract in NFL history from the Browns this past offseason. Mayfield, conversely, was traded away for a conditional fourth or fifth-round pick in 2024.
Whether Mayfield wants to admit it or not – he is salty about that.
Mayfield obviously comes with a certain number of unfortunate red flags of his own. His disastrous drama from a little while back with a young lady seemingly leaking his personal DMs wasn’t a great look.
But his issues are nowhere near the level of Watson’s issues.
The allegations made against Watson were genuinely disturbing. As were the text messages that he purportedly sent. And even though his girlfriend doesn’t think those things are a big deal, a lot of other people do.
— Game 7 (@game7__) August 1, 2022
That’s the nature of the NFL beast, though. Talent often times supersedes everything else – and Watson is extremely talented.
Will Mayfield be able to make Cleveland rue the day they chose Watson over him?
Time will tell.
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A graduate from the University of Texas, Anthony Amador has been credentialed to cover the Houston Texans, Dallas Cowboys, San Antonio Spurs, Dallas Mavericks and high school games all over the Lone Star State. Currently, his primary beats are the NBA, MLB, NFL and UFC.
