"I think you know, why it was surprising for everybody" - Baker Mayfield confesses he was shocked by Browns' decision to replace him with Deshaun Watson

The Baker Mayfield era in Cleveland is officially over. The Browns traded the former first-overall pick to the Carolina Panthers for a conditional fifth-round pick.

Cleveland decided to move on from Mayfield as their franchise quarterback this offseason after acquiring former Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson. Houston sent Watson and a 2024 sixth-round pick to the Browns. They received first-round picks in 2022, 2023, and 2024 along with a 2023 third-rounder and 2022 and 2024 fourth-round selections in exchange.

Baker Mayfield addressed the media for the first time since joining the Panthers on Tuesday, July 12. He revealed that he was shocked that the Cleveland Browns decided to replace him with Watson and said:

"You know, I think you know, why it was surprising for everybody. pretty unexpected. But, you know, if I'm focused on the past and I'm not doing my job and being a Carolina Panther now, so I'm, like I said, I'm grateful for my time there.

Mayfield added:

"Yeah, shocked. I'd say it was pretty much the only way to describe it, but you roll with the punches and you got to move forward. You know, it's a test of diversity and how I'm going to handle it and how I can move forward and be the best teammate possible with with our new home and looking forward to it."

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Baker Mayfield's time with the Cleveland Browns

The Browns selected Baker Mayfield number one overall in the 2018 NFL draft and he proved to be the best quarterback they've had in the last 25 years.

In his time at Cleveland, Mayfield has thrown for 1425 yards, 92 touchdowns and 56 interceptions. He also helped lead the Browns to their first playoff victory in the last 26 years.

The Browns picked up a win against their division rivals, the Pittsburgh Steelers, in the first round of the 2020 playoffs by a 48-37 scoreline.

In the playoff victory, Mayfield went 21-of-34 for 263 yards and threw for three touchdowns. Prior to that, he went 11-5 during the regular season that year while throwing for 3,563 passing yards, 26 touchdowns and just eight interceptions.

Mayfield will now focus on earning a starting job in Carolina. He has joined a quarterback room that consists of former first-round pick Sam Darnold, who went 4-7 as the starting quarterback last season for the Panthers. Also present are rookie Matt Corrall and PJ Walker.

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