The final nail in the coffin for Baker Mayfield in Cleveland was hammered home when the Browns completed a trade for Deshaun Watson, but the relationship had grown rotten long before that—indeed, the fifth-year quarterback had already requested a trade by then, and it had long been assumed that he would be moved at some point.
For now, he still remains tied to the Browns on a fifth-year option worth nearly $19 million in fully guaranteed base salary, and if they expect to move him at this point, it’s highly likely that they will have to eat a sizeable portion of that.