Baker Mayfield Named Cleveland Browns Starter

When the Cleveland Browns selected Baker Mayfield with the number one overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, the front office and coaching staff told reporters they planned on letting the rookie sit this year. So he familiarizes himself with the playbook. This while Tyrod Taylor, who they acquired before the draft, starts.

Taylor was inconsistent in the first two games of the season. However, remained the team’s starter until a concussion suffered in the first half of the game. This against the New York Jets opened the door for Baker Mayfield to get some action.

Mayfield immediately made an impact on offense and helped the Browns get their first win of the season. After the game, head coach Hue Jackson refused to confirm if Baker Mayfield will start for the Browns moving forward, but on Monday, Jackson confirmed that he is moving forward with Mayfield as the starter for the rest of the season.

“He’s the starting quarterback of this football team,” Jackson said. “We know it’s a long season, all kind of things can happen. Baker Mayfield is the starting quarterback of this team.”

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Jackson told reporters that Baker Mayfield’s performance on Thursday made the decision easier, and added that the rookie had a big smile on his face after he was told he was the starter. After the announcement, Mayfield fielded a few questions from reporters and said it was gratifying to have earned the role instead of it being handed to him.

“You want to have to work for it. You’ve got to earn it,” the rookie quarterback said Monday. “… Success is so much more fun when you have to work for it.”

Jackson had a lot of praise for his new starter and was impressed with what he saw from him on Thursday.

“There was nothing that I saw that he wasn’t ready to handle,” Jackson said. “He checked off every box for me.

“… This is sooner than when I thought it would happen because I thought we would play much better earlier on offense and we didn’t. There was a stark difference in how we performed when he got in there.” Does Baker Mayfield have the juice?