The Browns started investigating Deshaun Watson after Baker Mayfield's relationship with Odell Beckham Jr. soured in November.
On the Browns’ quarterback situation: Three things that make no sense
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Editor's note: Tony Grossi is a Cleveland Browns analyst for TheLandOnDemand.com and 850 ESPN Cleveland.
As I continue to process the Browns’ bold, all-in move to trade for Deshaun Watson and award him a breakthrough, fully-guaranteed contract that incurred the wrath of other teams, there are three things I simply don’t understand …
1. Why didn’t the Browns set out to trade Baker Mayfield when the quarterback market was hot?
GM Andrew Berry said the Browns began their intense “due diligence” of Deshaun Watson five months prior to the eventual trade on March 17. He called it a “five-month odyssey.”
Berry explained that they seriously began discussing Watson right after the 2021 trade deadline on Nov. 2. Coincidentally or not, that was during the Odell Beckham Jr. & Sr. crisis with Mayfield.
While players voiced support for Beckham in interviews and on social media, Mayfield received little backing. Jarvis Landry, Mayfield’s go-to receiver for three years, cut off all media interviews rather than disclose his true feelings.
The Browns were tone-deaf for not realizing Mayfield was losing support in the locker room for the first time in his Browns’ career. It was so obvious.
Both Berry and owner Jimmy Haslam denied the Browns made a conscious decision at that time to replace Mayfield. If true, it was a grave error. Eroding confidence in Mayfield undermined his ability to lead. More than anyone, coach Kevin Stefanski should have realized that. He had to realize that.
As they were engaging their analytics department to move the planets and stars to acquire Watson, the Browns should have formulated a realistic alternative plan if the Watson trade didn’t come to fruition. And that Plan B absolutely should have included trading Mayfield and replacing him with somebody – if not Watson.
But Berry and Stefanski insisted all along Mayfield would be the team’s starting quarterback in 2022. Plain and simple, that was dumb. It never would have worked.
The Browns should have engaged in trade talks for Mayfield concurrently with their due diligence on the Watson front. Even if the Watson Hail Mary failed, the Browns had viable, short-term options in replacing Mayfield with Matt Ryan, Jimmy Garoppolo and possibly Derek Carr.
But the Browns considered a quarterback change “Watson or bust.”
So they felt compelled to retain Mayfield even while an unidentified team executive confided to ESPN’s Chris Mortensen the Browns needed “an adult” at quarterback. Indeed, they needed that. And though there were options other than Watson, the Browns failed to pursue them to cover if the Watson gambit fell short.
When the Browns finally did secure Watson with an ownership check for $230 million, they were left with a huge Mayfield problem because trade options quickly evaporated.
* On March 16, the Seattle Seahawks traded Russell Wilson to the Denver Broncos in a package that included quarterback Drew Lock going to Seattle. Had the Seahawks known Mayfield were available, they might not have taken Lock in the deal.
* On March 17, the Washington Commanders filled their starting quarterback void by trading a third-round pick in 2022 and a conditional third in 2023 for Eagles and Colts washout Carson Wentz. You don’t think Mayfield would have been a better alternative there?
* On March 21, the Atlanta Falcons traded Matt Ryan to the Indianapolis Colts for a third-round pick. The Colts may have been cool on Mayfield, but he certainly was less expensive on a one-year prove-it season.
* On March 21, the New Orleans Saints re-signed free agent Jameis Winston for $15.2 million fully guaranteed and up to $28 million over two years. Again, Mayfield was a better alternative there.
* On March 21, the Falcons signed Marcus Mariota for $18.75 million over two years and $6.75 million guaranteed. Falcons coach Arthur Smith runs basically the same offense as Stefanski. Mayfield was a much safer bet in Atlanta than Mariota, who flopped under Smith with Tennessee.
So five viable landing spots for Mayfield dried up in six days.
All because the Browns stupidly – or stubbornly – maintained they still wanted Mayfield. And all of it happened after the obstinate Mayfield let the Browns know he wouldn’t play for them again.
Now the Browns have put Mayfield in the position of holding leverage over them. His guaranteed contract is a franchise albatross, paralyzing any trade and interfering with the assimilation of Watson and the launching of a new offensive era.
Just incredible that the supposedly smart Browns front office let it come to this.
2. Why didn’t the Browns just draft Watson with the 12th pick of the 2017 draft?
At NFL league meetings last week, Berry and Paul DePodesta, chief strategy officer, gushed about the obvious talents of Watson.
So, why didn’t they see those talents in 2017?
Yes, the man with the draft authority at the time was Sashi Brown, EVP of the Hue Jackson era. But Berry and DePodesta flanked either side of Brown. They all “collaborated” on the team’s strategic decisions.
Recall that the Browns owned the first and 12th picks in the 2017 draft. They debated between Myles Garrett and Mitch Trubisky with the first pick. Yes, Trubisky was the No. 1 QB on the team’s draft board – ahead of Patrick Mahomes and Watson.
After Jackson and Gregg Williams won the fight for Garrett, the Browns even flirted with the possibility of moving up from No. 12 to No. 2 to still take Trubisky. The Bears beat them to the punch.
After Mahomes went to Kansas City when Buffalo traded the Chiefs the 10th pick, Watson was still on the board at No. 12. But Brown, DePodesta and Berry unanimously agreed to trade the pick to Houston.
The Browns received Houston’s No. 25 pick in 2017 (Jabril Peppers) and first-round pick in 2018.
After Brown was fired, GM John Dorsey inherited the No. 1 overall pick and the No. 4 overall pick in 2018. He used them on Mayfield and Denzel Ward.
Five years after Berry and DePodesta passed on turning in the card for Watson, they traded six draft picks to Houston – including three No. 1s – and gave Watson the largest fully-guaranteed contract in NFL history.
3. Why didn’t the Browns re-sign Nick Mullens in free agency?
The Browns feel a league suspension is real for Watson to start the 2022 season. They replaced backup quarterback Case Keenum (traded to Buffalo) with free agent Jacoby Brissett to better mitigate the four-to-eight games of a Watson suspension.
But they’re also going to need a backup to Brissett during that time. It seemed like the ideal role for Mullens, who had experience in Stefanski’s offense (via the 49ers under Kyle Shanahan) and even had a decent emergency start in a must-win Game 14 against the Las Vegas Raiders last year.
With Mayfield and Keenum quarantined with COVID-19, Mullens orchestrated a clutch, fourth-quarter drive to give the Browns a 14-13 lead. The Raiders rallied for a game-ending field goal to win, 16-14.
Mullens’ performance inspired new Raiders coach Josh McDaniels to sign him as a backup to Carr. The cost was a pittance -- $1 million guaranteed and up to $2.5 million for one year.
What were the Browns thinking in not retaining Mullens as their QB3?
Please don’t tell me they’re saving that role for Mayfield.
