The Cleveland Browns had a franchise quarterback. One whose tenacity lit a fire under the team. One who brought them their first and only playoff win since the 1994 season, against their archrival, nonetheless.
One, too, who battled through injuries to be on the field.
Still, owner Jimmy Haslam and the team's decision makers wanted more — and gave up a king's ransom to acquire someone who not only hasn't panned out, but has earned fans' disdain along the way.
Sunday will be the second time that Baker Mayfield takes on his former team. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback signed a three-year, $165 million contract extension earlier this month, but the Browns were admittedly on his mind when he saw what the Buccaneers' slate looked like.
By sending Cleveland to an 0-2 start, Mayfield could have the last laugh.
What does the matchup with the Browns mean to Baker Mayfield?
Mayfield went 29-30 as the Browns starter from 2018-21, bringing some stability a position that was about as wobbly as it gets before he arrived. During what wound up being his final go-round in an orange helmet, Mayfield played through a partially torn labrum in his non-throwing shoulder.
His results that campaign — 13 interceptions in 14 games — gave Cleveland an excuse to search for better, landing on a disgraced Deshaun Watson and trading a massive haul of draft picks to add him.
Mayfield had the matchup with the Browns circled on his calendar, saying on the "Green Light with Chris Long" podcast, "There's no way to sugarcoat that one. That one means a lot."
Earlier this week, Mayfield talked about the emotions behind going up against the Browns. In January, Mayfield had posted on X that he "got shipped off like a piece of garbage" from Cleveland, a comment specifically aimed at former Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski, who's in charge for the Atlanta Falcons now.
Mayfield was tamer this time around, underlining the fact that a lot has changed since he was traded away.
"I think any time ... when there's history between a franchise, a coaching staff, anybody, you wanna come out on the winning side of that no matter what," Mayfield said. "Obviously, it's very different there, staff-wise and everybody, but, yeah, I spent four years there. I'm going into Year 4 here, started my career there. A lot of ups and downs."
Baker Mayfield could end Deshaun Watson's Browns career
There's a lot riding on this matchup for Mayfield's successor, who returned this season after two torn Achilles to take the Browns' starting signal-caller job, much to the chagrin of many in Cleveland. Watson threw an interception three plays into a Week 1 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars, and he only had 100 passing yards on 11 completions entering the fourth quarter of the defeat.
The Browns return to Cleveland for their home opener against the Carolina Panthers in Week 3. If Watson doesn't have strong performance against the Buccaneers, it'll be hard to trot him out in front of a home crowd already full of venom. Shedeur Sanders is waiting, and it's about time the Browns get a real look at what he and Dillon Gabriel can do in Year 2 with the roster assembled by Todd Monken and the Cleveland front office.
The Browns know what they have in Watson, and it's not great. Mayfield ushering in the next era of Browns football could be exactly what they need, if not poetic justive.
The heat is on, Deshaun.
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