We’ve been hearing about a potential Baker Mayfield trade for months now. Seriously, it’s been two months since the Cleveland Browns acquired Deshaun Watson from the Houston Texans.
As complicated as Watson’s legal situation is, a Mayfield trade has many other strings attached, possibly getting in the way of an agreement thus far.
But as we continue to wait for news on the Mayfield trade front, Michael Balko claims a trade between the Seattle Seahawks and the Browns is near. The deal would send Mayfield to the Seahawks, but the returning trade compensation is still unknown. That’s if his sources are accurate to begin with.
There are still several roadblocks both teams need to work through before coming to an agreement.
What’s delaying the Baker Mayfield trade?
As mentioned, the Mayfield trade isn’t as simple as most negotiations. There are several aspects likely slowing the process down.
For one, now that we’ve learned more about Deshaun Watson’s potential suspension, the Browns may be having both buyer’s and seller’s remorse, before they’ve even struck a Mayfield deal.
Obviously, if Watson is suspended for the full season, or even longer, the Browns will need a full-time starting QB in 2022. Could that even end up being Mayfield again? Probably not, the organization would likely prefer to go in a new direction altogether, possibly even handing the ball to backup Jacoby Brissett.
But likely the real reason for the trade delay is due to Mayfield’s fully-guaranteed $18.8 million salary for 2022. The Browns do have the option to pay a portion of the salary (whatever amount they choose), which could help sweeten the deal, making a trade more attractive for the team acquiring Mayfield’s contract. But to this point, they have appeared unwilling to pay enough to get a team to say yes.
So, the stalemate continues, but, as Michael Balko suggests, we might not be waiting much longer for Mayfield to be on the move to a new destination in 2022.
Related: Analyzing the Seattle Seahawks’ QB situation post Russell Wilson era
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Author: Andrew Buller-Russ