Baker Mayfield Reportedly Dealing with Additional Damage to Shoulder
Along with the announcement that Case Keenum would be the starting quarterback for the Cleveland Browns against the Denver Broncos, multiple reports have surfaced that Baker Mayfield is dealing with more than simply a torn labrum in his left shoulder. The fall he took against the Arizona Cardinals may have done additional damage.
Josina Anderson of CBS Sports and USA Today's reporting is particularly concerning.
Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski has simply said that he will continue to fight back in an effort to keep playing. As Mayfield pointed out in his press conference, that means working to tighten the muscles around the injury to try to prevent the shoulder from popping out of place.
But with Mayfield not out at least for the Broncos game, both Mayfield and the Browns organization will have to consider the possibility of just shutting him down and getting the surgery to repair the issue.
The Browns are trying to do everything they can get healthier so they can contend, but there may come a point pretty quickly where the team has simply lost too much due to injury and have to move onto next season.
That being said, neither the Browns nor Mayfield seem to be at that point right now. They'll continue to evaluate his shoulder for the game against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Halloween and further.
Keenum can help the situation by leading the Browns to a win against the Broncos. Nevertheless, surgery for Mayfield is a when rather than an if and the dream of getting through the season could be fading fast.
According to Jake Trotter of ESPN, both the team doctor and independent one he sought for additional counsel said he should not play against the Broncos. If the inflammation goes down, he could return for the Steelers game.
