Given the circumstances from this past summer, Baker Mayfield was able to work himself into a pretty sweet situation with the Carolina Panthers. But now, just eight weeks into the season, that pretty sweet situation is kind of a sour one.
The former No. 1 overall pick, thanks to a high-ankle sprain and some awfully underwhelming performances on his end, is currently penciled in as the team’s backup quarterback to PJ Walker. So when asked on Thursday about his current role, Mayfield showed he was a true teammate through and through.
“I mean, obviously, I wanna play,” he said. “I’m a competitor. We all wanna play. That’s the nature of this business. That’s the nature of playing sports. But my role right now is to help us win any way I can. And that’s practicing, helping out in the QB room and doing scout team stuff and just trying to get under their skin on defense. So, I’m enjoying what I’m doing now. Yeah, like I said, I’d like to be out there. But PJ played his ass off and deserves to go out there again and play. So I’ll do whatever I can to help this team win.”
Mayfield was also asked if he’s interested in being moved, perhaps to a team where he can play. But he didn’t seem too into it:
Baker Mayfield was asked if he would be open to a trade.
Mayfield: “I want to be here. I’ve spent enough time with these guys, I want to be here.” pic.twitter.com/0lSbk0704p— Sheena Quick (@Sheena_Marie3) October 27, 2022
This probably wasn’t the prove-it campaign Mayfield had hoped for. Nonetheless, he’s here for the Panthers and for Walker as they shoot for first place in the NFC South this weekend.