BEREA, Ohio (92.3 The Fan) – The frosty relationship between Arizona Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury and Cleveland Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield seems to have thawed.
Whatever ill will that existed between the two since Mayfield transferred from Texas Tech to Oklahoma following the 2013 season has cooled.
“We've talked since, played against him a few times since and it's exactly that,” Mayfield said Wednesday. "We're in a good place, obviously he's trying to beat me this week, I'm trying to beat him, and on top of that, [with] Kyler being involved, it makes a fun one for us.”
Kingsbury is now coaching Mayfield’s former Sooner teammate and 2018 Heisman Trophy winner Kyler Murray in Arizona after being hired by the Cardinals in January. The former Texas Tech coach left the school for a coordinator job at USC after 2018 but resigned when the Trojans blocked him from interviewing with NFL jobs, paving his way to Arizona.
Mayfield didn’t want to dwell on the past Wednesday but understood the questions about where things stood between him and Kingsbury leading up to Sunday’s meeting in the desert would be at the forefront of conversation.
“We’ve both acknowledged that an 18-year-old Baker wasn’t the ‘all-knowing’ that he thought he was,” Mayfield said. “I mean, guys, that’s back in 2013, six years ago. I’m not going to re-dig issues back then.”
Mayfield sat out in 2014 according to NCAA rules after transferring from Texas Tech where he started eight games for Kingsbury as a freshman. He completed 64.1% of his passes, threw for 2,315 yards with 12 touchdowns and nine interceptions earning him Big 12 freshman of the year honors.
Following the season, Mayfield didn’t understand why he hadn’t earned the right to play as a sophomore or receive a scholarship. The communication between Mayfield and Kingsbury also trailed off.
“I could have handled things differently,” Kingsbury said. “I’ve been proud of his success. What he’s accomplished has been phenomenal to watch.”
Kingsbury, who recruited Davis Webb in 2013 and was committed to the taller quarterback once he got healthy, wishes things would’ve gone different six years ago.
“I’d make sure the communication was there to the point he knew exactly how I felt about him,” Kingsbury said. “You learn those things as you go. The situation wasn’t what I hoped it would be or could have ended up. It obviously worked out really well for him.”
The two have spoken privately over the years and since worked through their differences.
Mayfield was a two-time college walk-on – for Kingsbury at Texas Tech and then with Oklahoma where he won the Heisman Trophy in 2017 before becoming the No. 1 pick in the 2018 NFL Draft by the Browns.
So, what helped cooler heads prevail between them?
“Passage of time, conversation, I think all of the above,” Mayfield said. “It’s in the past. Whatever happened, happened and you move forward.”
