Baker Mayfield's Contract Situation Should Interest the Browns

Former Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield didn’t have a clean exit from Cleveland.

As the Browns pursued a blockbuster trade for Deshaun Watson, Mayfield became disgruntled and requested a trade away from Cleveland. It was granted, as the Browns sent him to the Carolina Panthers for a fifth round draft pick. After spending time with the Panthers and Los Angeles Rams before finding a home with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Mayfield finds himself at another curious contract dilemma.

And that could end up being interesting for the Browns, who still don’t have a quarterback after Watson flamed out, and is currently competing against 2025 fifth-round pick Shedeur Sanders to be named Cleveland’s starter this season.

Mayfield reported to training camp in Tampa Bay without a new contract, and he’s cutting off negotiations with the Buccaneers until after the season, where he’ll be an unrestricted free agent. According to reports, Mayfield isn’t against getting franchise tagged following this season in Tampa, which would pay him around $47 million and $50 million for one season.

That’s unless another team wants to hand Mayfield a big-money contract. They’d be able to send the Buccaneers draft compensation (much less than a first-round pick, because that franchise would need to give Mayfield a handsome contract).

How the Browns fit in

The Browns hired 60-year-old Todd Monken as a first-time head coach. After the team fired Kevin Stefanski, Browns owner Jimmy Haslam said that Cleveland had too much talent to only win eight games over their previous two seasons.

Clearly, there’s an expectation that Monken will win games this season. The Browns don’t want to lose their way into the first overall selection.

Even though the Browns traded Myles Garrett to the Los Angeles Rams, they’re very excited about Jared Verse. He’s a suitable replacement, and fits the timeline of this roster. If Verse can replicate some of the pressure that Garrett caused on opposing quarterbacks, Cleveland’s defense will still be pretty good.

Offensively, Browns general manager Andrew Berry invested major resources into retooling the offensive line, and drafted two receivers in the top 50 of the 2026 NFL Draft.

The Browns are a team ready to roll at every position besides the most important one in all of sports – the quarterback.

Even though Monken is excited about Watson and Sanders, none of them look to be a long-term solution. If the Browns win seven or eight games, they might be too far down the draft board to select their quarterback of the future in Round 1.

Without Watson on their cap sheet, they’d be in a better position to entertain a free agent contract for Mayfield north of $50 million annually.

During his time with the Browns, Mayfield was a fan favorite. He led the organization to a huge playoff victory against the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2020. Monken coached Mayfield in 2019, so there’s familiarity there.

There’s no telling if he’d be willing to sign up for an organization run by Berry and Jimmy Haslam ever again. It all ended pretty ugly. Both parties have grown up, both on the field and off of it. It’s to be seen if there’d be any interest from either side.

But the Browns need to have all options open to solve this ongoing quarterback crisis. And if they win a handful of games in 2026 with a talented, young roster, adding a veteran quarterback like Mayfield could be a plan next offseason.

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