CLEVELAND, Ohio (92.3 The Fan) – Baker Mayfield can’t wait to throw to Odell Beckham Jr. again.
When Beckham suffered a torn ACL at Cincinnati in Week 7, the initial thought for some was it could be a death blow to the Browns offense.
It had the opposite effect.
Mayfield and the offense took off without Beckham creating a narrative that Cleveland might be better off without the star receiver, a notion that Mayfield and the Browns insist is false.
“I told you guys last year during the season that when we had that bye week, we were able to truly sit down and kind of see what we were doing well and what we were not, and we were able to grow from there – timing wise,” Mayfield said. “It was unfortunate when the injury happened – that is why you see the growth that we had from the first half to the second half of the year. I would not say it is because we are not throwing to him. You look at you take one person off, you still have 10 other guys who are on the field. It is not about that.
“The narrative can be what it is, but we are looking forward to getting back to work together.”
In that game against the Bengals, Mayfield missed on his first seven passes, the seventh resulting in an interception and Beckham being lost for the season on a ball throw to him. Mayfield set a franchise record by completing his next 21 passes and rallying the Browns for a 37-34 last second victory after Beckham was helped off the field.
The prevailing thought in the media was that Mayfield looked for Beckham too much and forced the ball in his direction causing the offense to be disjointed. Without Beckham to look for, Mayfield was able to relax and spread the ball around which led to an 11-5 season and first playoff berth in 18 years.
The numbers support the narrative.
With Beckham on the field Mayfield completed 103 of 177 passes (58.2%) with 10 touchdowns and seven interceptions. Without him, Mayfield completed 201 of 310 throws (64.8%) with 16 touchdowns and just one pick.
Mayfield believes adjustments during the bye week turned the team around and his expectation is that he’ll be able to establish better chemistry with Beckham this year.
“I think any time you are going from Year 1 to Year 2 in the same system, you are going to make a tremendous jump,” Mayfield said, “but I also think where we were before his injury happened on an underthrown ball by me that we truly did not have a true identity on offense at that point. I think that took our bye week right in the middle of the season last year to really sit down and do a self-scout and for us to grow.
“I have talked to Odell. He is very happy with where he is in the rehab process. I am happy for him. He looks good. He feels good. I am looking forward to starting where we should.”
Something that should benefit Mayfield in 2021 is the return of head coach Kevin Stefanski and offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt. The entire offense returns as well, including all six receivers.
Continuity is not a luxury Mayfield has been afforded in recent years, even dating back to college, but one he’s thrilled about entering 2021.
“When it comes in terms of looking at teams that have been successful – not just teams, any business model or any organization – when it comes to continuity, everybody being on the same page and having the same goals, that is so important,” Mayfield said. “For me going into it, this is the first time since having [former Oklahoma head coach Bob] Stoops from 2015-2016 as the same head coach that it is the first time it has happened for me, and I am obviously looking forward to it and continuing to build on what we had started last year.”
After leading the Browns where they hadn’t gone in 26 years in 2020, Mayfield has his sights set higher this year.
“We were not satisfied when it came to just making it into the playoffs, winning one game and then losing in the next round,” Mayfield said. “That is the great part about what we have coming back is everybody got a little taste of that and some guys who have made it further, everybody is hungry for more.”
