They shared some happy times in Cleveland, but now Baker Mayfield and Myles Garrett are opponents. One will lose in Carolina.
The Baker Mayfield revenge game is at hand, and the pressure mounts on Kevin Stefanski and Myles Garrett
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Editor's note: Tony Grossi is a Cleveland Browns analyst for TheLandOnDemand.com and 850 ESPN Cleveland. He has covered the Browns since 1984.
CHARLOTTE, NC
Four downs on Browns (0-0) v. Carolina Panthers (0-0)
First down: Double revenge.
Baker Mayfield has made a career out of reveling in revenge games. He did it with Oklahoma against Texas Tech after he transferred because he lost his job due to injury. He did it with Oklahoma against Ohio State after the Buckeyes humiliated his team the year before. He did it with the Browns against the Cincinnati Bengals after fired coach Hue Jackson rejoined the Bengals. So this must be the basis for all the love showered on the Panthers, who lost 10 of their last 12 games last year to finish 5-12. The Panthers swung from 4-point underdogs when the NFL schedule first came out to 1 ½-point favorites after the Browns traded the quarterback to Carolina in July. Healthy and confident again in his new environment, Mayfield has played up his vengeance, allegedly saying he intends to “[bleep] up” the Browns, and signing off with his marketing “team” to peddle an unsightly T-shirt proclaiming he is “Off the Leash.” Mayfield’s previous revenge games, however, seemed more of a “Mayfield against the world” theme. This time, the opponent carries its own revenge factor into the game. After prevailing over popular receiver Odell Beckham Jr. in what amounted to a him-or-me breakup at midseason, Mayfield’s trust in the locker room was broken – mostly among defensive players. As the Browns’ defense came into its own, Mayfield’s game went down the sewer, costing the team a legit chance at the playoffs, after which he elected not to play the final game of the season. This week, several defensive players revealed just enough discontent with Mayfield to support the notion they have revenge on their minds, too. When asked who has the edge between opponents familiar with each other -- the quarterback or the defense? -- safety John Johnson said, “It’s one of him and 11 of us.”
Second down: The Stefanski factor.
Mayfield’s “Off the Leash” T-shirt theme was a “subliminal” (his word) jab at his frustration with Kevin Stefanski’s offensive system at the end of their partnership. Stefanski’s effort to reinvent Mayfield the gunslinger into Mayfield the game manager worked in 2020, but Mayfield lost patience in the system in their second year together. Mayfield detected a loss of trust from his coach early on in the 2021 season. Then it seemed the more Mayfield took subtle digs at the offense, Stefanski gave his quarterback more rope to hang himself. Relocated in Carolina, Mayfield’s fiery personality immediately was embraced by the Panthers after a year of losing behind dull and uninspiring Sam Darnold. It appears the Panthers will allow Mayfield to revive his gunslinger, out-of-structure style on the field. “This system, I think, is going to fit me well. Just being able to play free,” Mayfield said this week. “I’m still going to be aggressive when it comes down to it.” There is a ton of pressure already on Stefanski to not lose to Mayfield. If Mayfield wins by slinging the ball all over the Browns, like he did at Oklahoma and at times before Stefanski arrived as Browns coach, it would look like Stefanski actually misdiagnosed Mayfield’s game and held him back all along.
Third down: Myles unleashed.
Myles Garrett had an eventful week making the rounds in one-on-one interviews and stepping back into his pre-Covid routine as a must-listen locker-room podium session on Friday. He disclosed to Cleveland.com that he ghosted a parting text message from Mayfield, conceded he had a “complicated relationship” with the quarterback, and now that they’re on opposing teams, “I’ve got to take him out.” By Friday, the newly elected defensive team captain turned his attention more to the overall Carolina offense. “My matchup is really the left tackle, left guard and center,” Garrett said. “I don’t think I’m going after one man in particular. I’m hoping to take a couple down. There’s a lot of guys we have the bulls-eye on.” Garrett has been hyped by Stefanski and coordinator Joe Woods for taking his game to another level in practices leading up to his sixth NFL season. Garrett is never shy about stating his desire to win defensive player-of-the-year honors – an award for which he has never received a single vote. Perhaps Garrett is overlooked in the voting because his seasons have tended to peter out in the final month. Only 10 of Garrett’s 59.5 sacks (counting postseason) – 16.8 percent -- have come in games in December and January. So while Garrett must take advantage of a favorable matchup in Game 1 – drawing rookie first-round pick Icky Ikwonu in his first NFL game – Garrett must know he has to be more effective in the games during a stretch run to the playoffs in December.
Fourth down: Baptism under water.
Cade York has been all the rage in his first Browns training camp and preseason. The kicker has done everything possible to instill confidence in everyone that he will be a reliable weapon for the team in close games – a weapon no Browns coach has enjoyed since Phil Dawson departed in free agency in 2013. At the same time, everyone knows, notably York, that nothing matters until the games get real. York’s first assignment brings the added factor of inclement weather that York has not yet encountered in the early going. Forecasts in Charlotte called for rain through Saturday night with a possible thunderstorm drifting over Bank of America Stadium around 2 p.m. on Sunday. They're the right conditions for York to break into the NFL. He’ll face even sterner weather in the months ahead.
The pick: Browns 20, Panthers 13.
My record: (Last year) 9-8.
