Baker Mayfield still with Cleveland Browns as no trade materializes during NFL draft
BEREA, Ohio — When the dust settled from the NFL Draft on Saturday night, the Browns had three new players from the University of Oklahoma and a Sooners legend left in limbo.
The Browns achieved many goals the past few days, but trading quarterback Baker Mayfield is a task general manager Andrew Berry has yet to complete.
The breakup with Mayfield occurred March 18 when the Browns made a controversial trade with the Houston Texans for Deshaun Watson and gave the three-time Pro Bowl quarterback a five-year contract worth an NFL-record $230 million fully guaranteed.
However, the divorce between the Browns and Mayfield has yet to be finalized.
"It's a fluid situation,” Berry said during a draft wrap-up news conference. “We're dealing with it day by day. We're pleased with the weekend, pleased with the guys that we added and we're looking forward."
Trade talks between the Browns and Carolina Panthers reportedly fizzled Friday, leaving the Seattle Seahawks as the most logical suitor for Mayfield, who won the Heisman Trophy at Oklahoma the season before Cleveland drafted him first overall in 2018. Yet NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported Saturday his sense is the Seahawks' interest in Mayfield is “lukewarm at best.”
The $18.858 million guaranteed Mayfield is owed next season on his fifth-year option continues to stand in the way of a deal. The Browns are expected to need to pay a significant portion of it to facilitate a trade, but Berry has made it clear since the NFL owners meetings in March he feels no pressure to rush into what he considers a “suboptimal” move.
While the Mayfield waiting game continued, the Browns drafted with symmetry, picking four players on offense, four on defense and a specialist.
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Of the nine players they chose, three are from Oklahoma, with the trio coming aboard Saturday.
"Someone mentioned it to me as I was coming down [to the media room],” Berry said. “I don't think it necessarily even hit my brain at that time. It just happens to be an interesting coincidence.”
Mayfield is the former Oklahoma star on everyone's mind.
Berry didn't want to comment on whether the Browns will likely find themselves keeping Mayfield into the summer to see if a quarterback injury elsewhere creates an unforeseen trade opportunity.
“I'd probably go back to what I said a little bit earlier,” Berry said. “It's fluid, and we'll deal with it as circumstances change accordingly.”
Mayfield would not be contractually obligated to report to Browns headquarters until mandatory minicamp June 14-16. To avoid fines and potential contractual issues, Mayfield would attend minicamp and training camp, which begins in late July, a league source said. The Browns can excuse Mayfield but not tell him to stay away.
“We'll deal with it as it comes,” Berry said.
Nate Ulrich can be reached at nulrich@thebeaconjournal.com.