“Kevin Stefanski ain’t developed nobody. Let’s get this on paper. I don’t know if I trust your evaluation with quarterbacks. Baker Mayfield is playing the best he’s ever played, not under you.” While discussing the Browns’ QB situation, Garrett Bush made it pretty clear who was to blame for the recurring instability under center in Cleveland. For all the evaluations HC Stefanski is doing this offseason to decide his starting QB, the analysts, along with the Dawg Pound, have lost faith. And now, Baker Mayfield, along with his fam, is taking subtle shots at the spiralling developments with the Browns.
On a recent edition of the New Heights podcast, Jason Kelce dropped the big question on Mayfield. “How can we fix the quarterback situation in Cleveland? What is going on, Baker?” But Mayfield carefully avoided the question while taking a solid dig at the franchise in the process. As Mayfield put it, “Listen, I plead the fifth, but I don’t know. When I was healthy, I was starting to get pretty damn good there. Not my problem anymore.”
After Cleveland, Mayfield had a few rocky stops with the Panthers and Rams during the ‘22 season. But he has finally found his footing in Tampa Bay, and the Cleveland saga is not something he worries about anymore. But Cleveland hasn’t forgotten Mayfield. As the post made the rounds on IG, one Browns faithful notably dropped a comment that even Emily Mayfield, Baker’s wife, couldn’t ignore.
In the comments, Jeff Sudbrook, the GM of T3 Performance (a premier athletic training facility in Avon and Beachwood), dropped a heartfelt message. “Browns really screwed up letting him go. He was the Franchise QB. I miss you @bakermayfield @emilywmayfield” Emily’s response? A short but sweet, “@jsudbrook we miss our T3 family!!”
Emily has notably been fond of the days Baker spent with the rest of the Browns training at the T3 Performance facility, and even after years of staying away from Ohio, the people haven’t forgotten the impact Baker had on the Browns’ QB room. Still, Emily further adds that things have turned out well for them. “But everything happens for a reason and life is pretty dang sweet down here in Tampa .” Baker is now playing his best football as the Bucs’ clear starter. He’s even brought them to the playoffs twice already.
Back in Cleveland, during his 4 year stint with the Browns, Baker Mayfield went a long way to justify his first-overall draft hype. Though his last season with the Browns got cut short with injuries, he still managed to post a 3,000+ yard season just like the years before. But with the Browns placing a big bet on Deshaun Watson in the ‘22 offseason, Mayfield ultimately requested a trade and ended his Browns career.
Years later, he still carries that sting of being replaced and refuses to comment on the current scenario. But as Emily put it, “life is pretty dang sweet down here in Tampa.” And Baker is bringing his infectious energy all around the field during this training camp.
Baker Mayfield’s newest training camp venture
While the roster reeled from injured stars missing camp, Baker Mayfield took initiative to lighten the mood in training camp. On Friday, as per the Bucs’ social posts, Mayfield hosted the first-ever Gus Swayze lookalike contest in camp. But it wasn’t just a break from the grind. It also revealed how Mayfield’s Hollywood persona has become a part of the Bucs’ culture. Celebrating his Amazon Prime series ‘The Undercovers’, quite a crowd showed up in mullets, wearing bandanas, vying for the top spot in impersonating Baker Mayfield’s character from the series.
Aug 23, 2024; Tampa, Florida, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield (6) warms up before a preseason game against the Miami Dolphins at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports
Mayfield, ever the showman, relished his role as judge. He even gave out a proper assessment of the contenders before selecting three finalists. “A lot of knee braces. Got that bone-on-bone, no cartilage – you gotta do it. The bandanas are accurate. The effort’s all there, so I appreciate this.” The Buccaneers’ social media team captured the spirit perfectly with viral clips showing not just Mayfield’s signature charisma, but also everyone’s willingness to lean in and have fun—the kind of chemistry winning teams and fan bases are built on.
Adding to the spectacle, the winner’s attention to detail set him apart. As Mayfield quipped, it was the “Crocs in ‘sport mode’” that clinched the victory. The winner, James Hill, a YT content creator for the Bucs, posed for a photo with Mayfield holding a custom-made trophy. The trophy was as unique as the character of Gus Swayze himself: a football with a mullet, mustache and bandana.
By infusing camp with a dose of Hollywood and humor, Mayfield’s Swayze contest didn’t just go viral online. It gave the Buccaneers an early jolt of unity and joy, setting the tone for the challenges ahead. With these off-field moments, the Bucs’ know what a star they have in Baker Mayfield. As for the Browns, they continue to grapple with their QB conundrum. All the while, Cleveland sadly remembers what could have been.
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