Mayfield elevated to Browns starting QB
The Cleveland Browns hope the 30th time is the charm.
Rookie Baker Mayfield will become the 30th quarterback to start for the Browns since 1999 when they visit the Oakland Raiders on Sunday.
Browns coach Hue Jackson named Mayfield the starter after Monday’s practice. The move was widely expected after the No. 1 overall pick in April’s draft came off the bench and led the team to a 21-17 comeback win over the New York Jets on Thursday; it was the Browns’ first victory since December 2016.
Mayfield embraces the idea of being viewed as the savior of the Browns.
“It comes with the territory,” he said. “That’s what I signed up for. I’m living my dream, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
Twenty-nine other expansion-era QBs haven’t been able to rescue the Browns, but Steelers running back James Conner is tripped up by Buccaneers defensive tackle Vinny Curry during a first-half run on Monday night in Tampa, Fla. The game was not over in time for this edition. For the result, see Dispatch.com.
the reigning Heisman Trophy winner isn’t fazed by the franchise’s history of failure at the game’s most important position.
“It’s 2018,” Mayfield said. “Don’t really care.”
The Browns aren’t just starting Mayfield for one game and then re-evaluating their QB situation. This is his team now.
“We know it’s a long season, all kind of things can happen, but Baker Mayfield is the starting quarterback of the team,” Jackson said.
“The added pressure of being out there first is there, but I think he can handle it. He has demonstrated that. He showed me at every opportunity that he was working at it to be ready for when his time was called that he would make the best of it, and he has done that. He has earned it by the way he has played.”
Mayfield supplanted Tyrod Taylor, who is in the NFL’s concussion protocol and didn’t practice Monday. Jackson said Taylor will be the No. 2 QB if healthy, and, if not, veteran free-agent pickup Drew Stanton will be the backup.
Taylor left the game Thursday after being sacked in the second quarter. Asked about Taylor’s future with the Browns, Jackson said the veteran is “not going anywhere.”
The San Francisco 49ers said that Jimmy Garoppolo suffered a torn ACL in his left knee in a loss at Kansas City on Sunday, sidelining him for the rest of the season.
“It is very unfortunate,” coach Kyle Shanahan said. “I’m not going to sugarcoat it. It was hard waking up today. We were down and disappointed about it because we were looking forward a lot to playing with Jimmy this year.”
The 49ers (1-2) now must turn again to C.J. Beathard at quarterback. Garoppolo will have surgery and should be ready to play next season.
The Raiders became the second team in the past 20 seasons to start the year with three straight losses after leading the first three games at halftime. The latest blown lead came in Miami in a 28-20 loss.
“Nobody cares right now. They want results,” coach Jon Gruden said. “We want to win. … We know we got to finish football games much better.”
The Raiders have held the lead for nearly two-thirds of the time and trailed for only 22:28 over the first three games. In fact, they have not been behind for even a second in the first three quarters of their games.
But the fourth quarter has been a disaster. The Raiders were outscored 13-0 in a loss to the St. Louis Rams and 10-0 in a loss to the Denver Broncos.
• Rookie Josh Rosen will take over as the winless Arizona Cardinals’ starting quarterback on Sunday against the Seattle Seahawks. Rosen, the 10th overall pick, replaced veteran Sam Bradford in Sunday’s 16-14 loss to the Chicago Bears.
• Miami defensive end William Hayes will miss the rest of the season with a torn ACL he suffered trying to avoid a roughing-the-passer penalty. Hayes was hurt when he sacked Oakland’s Derek Carr. “He was trying to not put body weight on the quarterback,” coach Adam Gase said. “His foot got caught in the ground.”
• Rams cornerback Aqib Talib could miss a significant period because of an ankle injury suffered against the Los Angeles Chargers that probably will require surgery.