MONDAY MORNING QUARTERBACK

Tyrod Taylor plans to sign with the Giants



The Giants wanted to go into the 2022 season with a viable option at quarterback other than Daniel Jones and they’ve reportedly come to agreement with an experienced veteran on Tuesday.

According to multiple reports, Tyrod Taylor plans to sign with the Giants when the new league year opens on Wednesday. Taylor was with the Bills in 2017 when Giants General Manager Joe Schoen joined the personnel department, but Giants head coach Brian Daboll was not yet on the Buffalo staff.


Taylor is reportedly signing a two-year deal worth $17 million with $8.5 million in guaranteed money. The full structure of the contract is not clear, but it’s more than the base value of the deal that Mitch Trubisky, who was also believed to be a Giants target, reportedly agreed to with the Steelers. Pittsburgh offers a clearer path to a starting job than the Giants, however.

Taylor started six games for the Texans last season and has also started games for the Chargers and Browns since leaving the Bills at the end of the 2017 season. If Jones doesn’t show improvement or continues his trend of missed time with injury, Taylor will be in line to add to that total.

PFT

 

Browns QB Baker Mayfield releases statement: 'I have no clue what happens next'

Cleveland Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield released a statement Tuesday night on Twitter regarding his uncertainty with the franchise amid reports that Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson was meeting with the Browns to discuss a potential trade.

Mayfield thanked the city of Cleveland and wrote, "I have no clue what happens next, which is the meaning behind the silence I have had during the duration of this process."

The full statement read:

"Cleveland,

"The past 4 years have been nothing short of truly life changing since I heard my name called in the draft to go to Cleveland. This is not a message with hidden meaning. This is strictly to thank the city of Cleveland for embracing my family and me. We have made many memories and shared growing in this process through all the ups and downs. I have no clue what happens next, which is the meaning behind the silence I have had during the duration of this process. I can only control what I can, which is trusting in God's plan throughout this process.

"I have given the franchise everything I have. That is something I've always done at every stage, and at every level. And that will not change wherever I take my next snap. Whatever happens.. I just want to say thank you to the fans who truly embraced who I am and the mentality that aligned so well with this city's hard working people.

"Cleveland will always be a part of Emily and my story. And we will always be thankful for the impact it has had and will have in our lives.


"Sincerely,

"Baker Reagan Mayfield."

Mayfield is coming off a turbulent season in which his struggles on the field were coupled with a shoulder injury.

The former No. 1 overall pick underwent shoulder surgery after missing the final game of the Browns' 8-9 season and despite all the tribulations of the 2021 campaign was reported to be in the Browns' plans for 2022.

Plans would seem to be changing.

Watson, who requested a trade from the Texans in January of 2021, was expected to meet with the Browns on Tuesday, NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported.

On Friday, a Harris County (Texas) grand jury did not find enough evidence to charge Watson with a crime following allegations of sexual misconduct stemming from massage therapy sessions. Watson also faces 22 civil lawsuits, but Friday's news opened the door to trade talks for the former Pro Bowler, who remains under NFL investigation and is subject to potential discipline under the league's personal-conduct policy.

Mayfield burst upon the scene after being drafted in 2018 and threw a then-NFL rookie record 27 touchdown passes for the Browns. That still stands as his career high after four seasons, though. In 2019, the Browns wobbled under grand expectations. In 2020, Mayfield and the Browns produced a winning season and a playoff berth, but in 2021, lofty aspirations weighed them down once more.


Mayfield's 2021 campaign saw him complete just 60% of his passes, throwing for 3,010 yards, 17 touchdowns and 13 interceptions.

Nothing is final as of yet and, as aforementioned, plans change, but Mayfield's words read as the foreshadowing of a conclusion in Cleveland.

Time will tell if the Mayfield era has ended with the Browns or will sustain another bump in the road.

NFL.com

 

What the Browns need to do RIGHT NOW is consummate the trade with Indy if reports are true. Their first round pick for Baker. That ends the drama as they have obviously chosen to move on from him. He can get on with his life and the Browns can start their search for his replacement. It only took us 19 years to find someone as good as he is.

Regardless of what Watson decides, that first rounder is the best deal you are getting for a Mayfield coming off injury and in the last year of his deal.

For the Colts fans… Baker can take you to the playoffs, for the Browns fans, break out the QB list shirt, here we go again.

 

Im totally confused (per usual) as to how the Browns are handling this. Im sure I just dont understand, but this whole thing with the QB situation makes zero sense to me and seems to be very disruptive and detrimental to the rest of the team. Shoulda/coulda been handled better, in my opinion.

 

The only way to handle this would have been to trade Baker to Indy, THEN pursue a QB with your new first rounder gained from the trade.

In my case it wouldn’t have mattered. I don’t want Watson, no matter what. They don’t give a shit about what I want, however, they wouldn’t be ridiculed in all markets and half the fan base for handling it the way they are. The other half of the fan base doesn’t care how they win a championship, as long as their odds go up to do so.

Two years from now, when Watson looks like Baker in Stefanski’s system, the same fans will be calling for Watson’s head, while Watson is demanding a new contract or demanding a trade.

Watson is a piece of shit from a human being standpoint and a teammate stand point. How is no one discussing how he already gave up on his team by demanding a trade?

Regardless of ALL THIS NOISE, he isn’t picking Cleveland anyway, so Haslem and Berry are going to be left holding their dicks with no answer at QB by the end of this week.

 

I’m not sure you’re going to get a first from Indy for Baker, and it could be that the market for him is cool enough that the Browns are simply looking to see what happens for other teams before deciding on a final price.

If Indy ends up being the trade partner, I wouldn’t rule out a deal for a third this year and a contingent second next year as the price.

 

Colts don't have a 1st

 

It must be their 2023 1st… that is what is being reported is that the Texans get (2) first from the Browns and (1) first from the Colts and Mayfield goes to Indy.

 

Im thinking Baker Mayfield is gone, whether or not the Browns even get Watson. The real stinker is, what will a Mayfield trade draw... some say a 'good' return, some say, 'not so good'.

I honestly feel for the Browns fans as this is just not the direction or course any of the fans envisioned... at least not me.

Prompt action needs to take place, in my opinion... the longer this festers, the worse-off things may get.

 

They don't want Baker to "Odell" Amari.

 

Maybe the Wilson-less Seahawks might be a potential trade partner?

 

I don't see a very strong market for him. He couldn't have been in a more QB friendly system and he still struggled. His ceiling is game manager, his ego thinks he's an MVP.

 

The Falcons interest in Watson intrigues me. Matt Ryan has a 55M dead cap number. 7.5M could potentially be paid by a new team but that's still a big number.

 

Just for clarification - You’re suggesting Matt would play elsewhere in this scenario?

 

The 2023 first option is interesting but, with the recent flameout of Wentz, I could see the Colts being shy about that kind of deal again.

 

The system is game manager. There is no room for ad lib in this system. You don't need a top QB to run it, but you do need 100% buy in from every player on offense. Every receiver needs to go to their mark, or it will fail. In 2020, the Browns had players that do just that and they had success moving the ball, both on the ground and through the air. I hate to keep blaming things on OBJ, but it wouldn't have mattered if it was Baker or Watson or any other QB not willing to go against the system, OBJ didn't like the system and his routes broke off constantly from what they were supposed to be, which caused a system break down. I truly feel his influence in the locker room degraded the whole room against the system. Those that were succeeding in the system the previous year all of a sudden aren't. Would a healthier Baker made it better? Probably, but this system is so precise that it is easy to fail. It is QB friendly in the sense that all you have to do is go through progressions...but a capable QB KNOWS where those progressions are supposed to be and if they aren't there, then a capable QB fails more than a QB that says "F" the system and does his own thing.

Bake would have a lot more success going somewhere that he could be a gunslinger.

I wish him the best, but the letter showed a sign of weakness. Just be a professional and take the next step. Why say goodbye basically, when nothing is even close to being set? Watson is NOT coming to Cleveland.

For the record, all those saying it is beyond repair and there is no way Cleveland can move forward with Baker in 2022.. I call bullshit. If anything, this could be his best year yet. He thrives on adversity and 2022 he is playing for a contract. We might see things from him that we haven't seen before, simply because he won't give a shit about keeping status quo with the system. He may choose to audible out of situations that will cause an even bigger rift between him and Stefanski, if there was one to begin with. However, if it works, he won't be able to pull him. It will just reiterate that the system is flawed, not the QB. Then he will ride off into the sunset with a new contract elsewhere and we will still be looking for a QB in 2023.

 

Freddie Kitchens' system was much more his speed, we just had a guy in over his head calling plays.

 

I could see him in Indy, Rivers 2.0.

 

No point in us going back and forth over Baker. I respect your opinion. I just don't share it and neither does your football team. Added to his limitations appears to be some immaturity that I believe has factored heavily in how the Browns are approaching the situation. Playing out his 5th year option was just never a great idea. Better to bring it to a head now if you don't see a scenario where you are going to offer him the going rate for QBs. Depending on his medical I could see a guy like Carson Strong in the 2nd round for the Browns. Tons of experience, big arm, can read defenses.