PALM BEACH, Fla. — As long as Baker Mayfield’s situation remains unresolved, the Seattle Seahawks will be rumored as a possible next destination.
But Mayfield’s future might be unclear for a while.
Speaking at the AFC coaches media availability session Monday morning, Browns coach Kevin Stefanski gave no real timeline for when the team will make a decision on Mayfield and whether he will be traded, cut or even possibly kept on the roster.
“I think we’ll see,” Stefanski said. “I think everybody understands the situation. We’re hoping that there’s closure to it at some point.”
But what point that is Stefanski said he didn’t know.
“It’s a unique situation,” Stefanski said. “We’ve got to see how it plays out. I think all of us would love an answer yesterday, but that’s not the reality of it.”
Mayfield, the No. 1 pick in the 2018 draft and Cleveland’s starter the past four years, asked for a trade even before the Browns acquired Deshaun Watson from Houston. The Browns also have since signed Jacoby Brissett as a backup and possible hedge against Watson being suspended by the NFL as it conducts an investigation into allegations of sexual assault.
But for now, no team seems to want to take on Mayfield at a guaranteed $18.9 million for the 2022 season, and also knowing he could just be a one-year rental at that price.
The market for teams who might be interested in acquiring a veteran quarterback also has shrunk after recent moves, including the Colts trading for Matt Ryan and the Falcons then signing Marcus Mariota as his replacement.
And while the Seahawks in the post-Russell Wilson world will undoubtedly continue to explore all options, they also have sent strong signals that they are legitimately ready to go into the 2022 season with Drew Lock.
But if Mayfield became available at a smaller price — with the Browns either agreeing to take on some of the salary or even possibly cutting Mayfield and then a new team working out its own deal with him — the Seahawks could be interested.
Seattle, though, likely wouldn’t want to make any investment in Mayfield that would essentially assure he’d have to be the starter in 2022, with the Seahawks appearing to want to give Lock a legitimate shot to be the No. 1 guy.
Still, Seattle has just two quarterbacks on its roster, Lock and Jacob Eason, with free-agent Geno Smith, the backup the past three years, remaining unsigned.
The NFL Network last week floated that the Browns might lean toward keeping Mayfield if they can’t find a taker for him as an additional hedge against Watson being suspended for a significant amount of time.
Browns owner Jimmy Haslam, though, talked about Mayfield in the past tense last week: “Baker gave it everything he had while he was here. Nobody can question his effort this past year, and nobody can question the four years he gave to the city of Cleveland. We wish him nothing but the best of luck.”
The NFL draft from April 28-30 seems to be a tipping point for determining Mayfield’s future. For now, he remains in an uncomfortable limbo.
