Browns takeaways: GM Andrew Berry expects healthier Baker Mayfield to play best ball down stretch

In the early stages of Browns training camp, General Manager Andrew Berry said July 30 he looked forward to quarterback Baker Mayfield having “another fantastic season.”

That hasn't come close to happening.

Berry hasn't given up on Mayfield finishing strong, though.

Whether Berry's goal is to boost Mayfield's confidence, challenge him or both is open interpretation, but the GM made it clear Wednesday the franchise isn't lowering its expectations for the quarterback despite his disappointing performances and long list of injuries — left, non-throwing shoulder, left heel, right knee and groin.

“Baker is incredibly physically tough,” Berry said on Zoom. “I think he’s told you guys in moments where he’s been frustrated with his own performance. That being said, he’s had stretches this year where he has played well for us and, look, the reality of it is that he’s worked through injuries, no different than other players on our roster. I know what he expects of himself and what we expect of him whenever he’s on the field to perform at a capable level, a winning level, and we expect him to play his best stretch of the year here after the bye.”

On their bye this week with a record of 6-6, the Browns need to go on a miraculous run in their final five games of the regular season to become postseason qualifiers for the second consecutive year.

In the context of Berry describing what he hopes to learn about the Browns in the coming weeks, his apparent attempt to speak Mayfield playing well into existence looks first and foremost like a challenge.

"The next five games really provide us with a really valuable opportunity," Berry said. "I think oftentimes people talk about adversity or challenges really when it's convenient, but the reality is it's really important to us as a team and organization because No. 1, you learn a lot about people, whether it's on the field, publicly or privately, but, also, adversity is universally important for growth. I think that's something that we need as a team and we need as an organization, and I think the next five games provide us with a valuable opportunity to grow and work through what will be a very difficult stretch.

"The reality of it is entering the season and entering December, you hope for the opportunity to play meaningful football late in the year, and that's something that is still right in front of us. We're going to play five teams that I think are playoff caliber — four in the AFC and three in our division. I am excited about that opportunity. I am excited to learn about how our team deals with adversity and the resolve, and that is something that we are looking forward to seeing how our group responds out of the bye.”

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More than anyone else, the Browns need Mayfield to respond well in their upcoming games against the Baltimore Ravens (8-3), Las Vegas Raiders (6-5), Green Bay Packers (9-3), Pittsburgh Steelers (5-5-1) and Cincinnati Bengals (7-4). The Browns won't play again until Dec. 12, when they'll host the Ravens, then the Raiders the following week. They'll visit the Packers and Steelers before facing the Bengals in the Jan. 9 regular-season finale in Cleveland.

In 11 games this season, Mayfield has completed 194-of-312 passes (62.2%) for 2,413 yards and 11 touchdowns with six interceptions for a rating of 89.8. His completion percentage is ranked 27th and his rating 20th among 34 qualifying quarterbacks. He has rushed 27 times for 93 yards (3.4 average) and a touchdown and taken 29 sacks.

The defense has been playing well lately, but Mayfield hasn't held up his end of the bargain. The Browns have scored more than 17 points just once in their past seven games.

"We have just not been consistent enough in the passing game," Berry said. "I want to be clear here — that's not necessarily a one-player or a one-person problem."

Berry is right, but the quarterback bears the most responsibility.

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Immediately after Sunday's 16-10 loss to the AFC North-leading Ravens, coach Kevin Stefanski rejected the notion the Browns would possibly make a quarterback change by sitting Mayfield and replacing him with backup Case Keenum.

Berry supported Stefanski's statement.

“Baker’s our quarterback,” Berry said. “He’s healthy enough to win games for us. He has won games for us in the past couple weeks. If he’s ready to go, he’s going to be our starter.”

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Mayfield has been playing through a completely torn labrum in his left shoulder — and wearing a harness in hopes of preventing it from repeatedly dislocating — since he suffered the injury on Sept. 19 in Week 2. He suffered a fractured humerus bone in the same shoulder on Oct. 17 in Week 6.

The Browns rested him on a short work week Oct. 21 against the Denver Broncos, and Keenum helped them prevail 17-14 on "Thursday Night Football."

But Mayfield has started the rest of the games, even though lower-body injuries have piled up in recent weeks.

Mayfield said his left heel bothered him during a game for the first time on Nov. 7 in a Week 9 blowout win over the Bengals. He suffered a right knee contusion on Nov. 14 in a Week 10 blowout loss to the New Patriots and sat out the fourth quarter. Then he suffered a groin injury on Nov. 21 in a close Week 11 win over the Detroit Lions.

Mayfield has limped in recent games, and his accuracy issues seemed to reach a new low against the Lions. He skipped his postgame news conference after the 13-10 victory and later blamed frustration with his individual performance.

Yet the Browns stuck with Mayfield, 26, in Baltimore.

"For any player in terms of whether they’re on the field or not, it’s really three separate things," Berry said. "No. 1, are they medically cleared from the perspective that they can’t do anything harmful to their health, or significantly harmful to their health?

"No. 2, are they medically cleared in a manner that would allow them to function in their role on the field, or play at a winning level in their role on the field?

"No. 3, does the player both by feel and then honestly by evidence throughout the practice week, can he perform all the requirements of his role on game day? And so we’ll never put a player on the field that doesn’t pass those three criteria.

"Our expectation is when guys are on the field, and our players’ expectation of themselves when they’re on the field if they’re there, they’re going to perform at a high level."

In other words, Berry isn't giving Mayfield a pass this season because he's been playing hurt.

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The Browns and Mayfield entered this season with the hope they would reach a long-term contract extension, but meaningful talks have yet to take place, and a disappointing 2021 has complicated matters.

Berry was asked whether he needs to see Mayfield play next season to decide his future with the organization.

“You really do try and take a wider lens, so to speak, but really our focus is on playing our best football in December and positioning ourselves to really play in the postseason this year because we have a ton of meaningful games, and that really significantly outsizes any individual player decision across the roster that we're going to make,” Berry said. “There will be plenty of time to think through how we're going to build the roster to next year.”

Berry repeatedly referred to the body of work of Mayfield, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft.

"With Baker, especially from a long-term perspective, you really try and take a big-picture approach," Berry said. "Really with any player, it’s about body of work really over several years and also taking into context the environment or a particular individual’s situation. We’ve seen Baker play a lot of good football here. We’ve seen Baker play good football this season. I know he’s excited, and we’re excited for the opportunity ahead of us, and we expect him to play his best football moving forward over the next five weeks.

"I don’t know it’s so much about showing me anything. Really, our focus is on winning games and playing at a high enough level that allows us to be in a strong spot in December. That’s really where the focus is. I think Baker showed a lot over the past four or kind of three-plus seasons, so I don’t necessarily subscribe to this notion that there’s something in these next five games that’s of particular focus."

Mayfield never experienced continuity as a professional player until this season. He had never been with the same head coach and used the same playbook in consecutive years until now, and injuries have muddied the picture.

Presented those points and pressed on whether he needs to see Mayfield play more in Stefanski's offense to decide the quarterback's future, Berry said, “I don't think that's necessarily the case. But really the focus is making sure that both Baker and our team really play as well as possible the next five games so that we can be in a good position at the end of the month.”

To be clear, the Browns have ample time left to make a decision about Mayfield, if they choose to use it. He is under contract through the 2022 season, when he'll make $18.858 million guaranteed because Berry exercised the fifth-year option on his rookie deal in April.

There can be added pressure and stress tied to playing for a contract extension.

Berry said he couldn't answer whether Mayfield has been negatively affected by his unresolved long-term contractual situation, but his educated guess would be no.

“He's mentioned probably multiple times throughout the year that really his focus is on football and winning games,” Berry said. “I think there are a lot of players across the league that are in similar boats whether they're free agents or extension eligible. It comes with the territory in terms of being a professional athlete, but I do know this: Baker is both physically and mentally resilient, and he's hyper-focused.

“At the end of the day, he's hyper-focused on winning and controlling his play, the offensive play moving forward. I doubt that [the contract situation is] something that's really top of mind with him. That's why players hire representation to take care of business affairs for them. I think really all our focus is in terms of winning games down the stretch here.”

Berry said his belief Mayfield will be healthier in December, especially after resting this week during the bye, gives him hope the QB will play well down the stretch.

“I think certainly that’s part of it,” Berry said. “I think he’s told you guys he’s felt healthier week to week.”

Berry said evaluating the big picture of Mayfield's career without overreacting to this season is "probably more art than science."

"It's a little bit more feel," Berry said. "It's a little bit about looking at things without emotion and ultimately trying to be fair to your team and your organization."

What the Browns truly feel about Mayfield will become evident with how they approach the offseason, and the strategy may hinge on which options present themselves at the sport's most important position.

Nate Ulrich can be reached at nulrich@thebeaconjournal.com.

Ravens at Browns

Time: 1 p.m. Dec. 12

TV: CBS

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Andrew Berry expects Baker Mayfield to play best ball down stretch