Baker Mayfield ended up being drafted with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft by the Cleveland Browns. It was a move that shocked some NFL fans, while others were fully expecting the Browns to take the polarizing quarterback from Oklahoma. It appears that the Browns were not the only team that was sold on drafting Mayfield.
According to a report from Andrew Brandt of The MMQB , the New England Patriots were poised to trade up to the No. 2 overall pick in the draft to take Mayfield.
New England was looking to bring in a talented quarterback to replace Tom Brady in the future. Mayfield certainly would have been an intriguing fit for the Patriots. Bill Belichick is known for taking talented quarterbacks and developing them, as the emergences of Jimmy Garoppolo and Jacoby Brissett showed last season.
Mayfield won the Heisman Trophy last season at Oklahoma. He put together an absolutely monstrous season from a statistical standpoint.
He completed 71.0 percent of his pass attempts for 4,340 yards, 41 touchdowns, and five interceptions. Mayfield also ran for 310 yards and five touchdowns. Those numbers show exactly why he ended up being drafted by the Browns at No. 1.
Agent says Patriots considered trading up to No. 2 for Baker Mayfield https://t.co/LOfj8rVZVD
— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) May 1, 2018
Standing in at 6-foot-1 and 215 pounds, Mayfield received criticism for his build throughout the draft process. Some analysts thought he would be too small to play the position effectively. Other quarterbacks like Aaron Rodgers and Russell Wilson have proven that being a big quarterback isn’t necessary to succeed.
Instead of getting one of the elite quarterbacks in the draft, the Patriots waited late to draft one. They ended up drafting LSU quarterback Danny Etling in the seventh round. He will end up being the third-string quarterback behind Brady and Brian Hoyer.
New England is hoping that they won’t need to make a change at quarterback anytime soon. Brady won the NFL MVP award last season, and the Patriots would like him to stick around for a few more years.
All of that being said, this news is certainly intriguing. Mayfield is going to have a chance to start as a rookie for the Browns, although he will have to beat out Tyrod Taylor. In New England, he would have been a lock to sit behind Brady for at least a couple years.
