The Browns' former Pro Bowl tackle Joe Thomas believes that Baker Mayfield may have 'overplayed his hand' with the franchise, resulting in the organization deciding to enter and eventually winning the Deshaun Watson sweepstakes, thus leaving the former No. 1 overall pick in limbo.
On an episode of his podcast, 'The Thom and Hawk Football Show,' along with another former Brown Andrew Hawkins, Thomas stated that Mayfield bet on himself--but in the completely wrong way. The All-Pro tackle made the assumption that if Mayfield would've never turned down an alleged contract offer from the franchise, Cleveland would have never pursued Watson.
“If [Mayfield] would’ve had a great season, we probably would have been talking about a $40 million a year contract,” Thomas said on “The Thom & Hawk Football Show.” “We would have said ‘Hey, bravo. Way to believe in yourself."
This may sound logical but according to a league source that talked to Browns insider Mary Kay Cabot, Thomas' claims about Mayfield turning down a massive contract offer from the team is reportedly "untrue." The future Hall of Famer's belief stemmed from reports that Mayfield had turned down a reported $30 million contract last offseason.
While there were reports of an offer by the team, there were never any official talks about the Browns actually offering Mayfield.
However, according to Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio, Thomas may not be entirely wrong, claiming that it's highly possible that Mayfield’s camp reached out and communicated with the Browns that they were looking for a salary in the $40 million range, while Cleveland could only offer $30 million.
Whether the Browns offered Mayfield the contract or not is irrelevant. We are past that stage now that the team is committed toward Watson. The team is looking to shop their former starting QB, the only issue is--there doesn't seem to be anyone interested.
The 26-year-old signal-caller has been quiet ever since he requested a trade to the Indianapolis Colts before the franchise ultimately decided to go with Matt Ryan. It still remains unclear what team would even be interested in Mayfield's services this season.
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