Baker Mayfield’s next contract could end up putting the Browns back on the clock.
Mayfield arrived at Tampa Bay training camp without a new deal, and he’s already shut down talks with the Buccaneers until after the season. That sets him up to hit unrestricted free agency, with reports saying he would be open to a franchise tag after the year. That tag would land somewhere around $47 million to $50 million for one season.
If another team wants him instead, the price would not just be the contract. A club would also have to send Tampa Bay draft compensation, though less than a first-round pick because the team taking Mayfield on would also need to pay him handsomely.
For Cleveland, that possibility matters because the quarterback situation still isn’t settled. The Browns moved on from Deshaun Watson after he flamed out, and right now he’s competing with 2025 fifth-round pick Shedeur Sanders for the starting job. The organization hired 60-year-old Todd Monken as a first-time head coach after firing Kevin Stefanski, and owner Jimmy Haslam made it clear Cleveland had too much talent to keep winning only eight games over the previous two seasons.
That puts pressure on Monken to deliver right away. The Browns do not want to stumble into the top of the draft order, even though they still need a long-term answer under center.
The rest of the roster is built to compete. Cleveland traded Myles Garrett to the Los Angeles Rams, but the team is high on Jared Verse as the replacement and believes he fits the timeline. If Verse can generate even a portion of the pressure Garrett brought, the defense should still hold up.
Andrew Berry also spent heavily to reshape the offensive line and used two top-50 picks in the 2026 NFL Draft on receivers. In most spots, the Browns look ready to go. The problem is the one position that matters most.
Monken likes what he has in Watson and Sanders, but neither looks like a clean long-term solution. And if Cleveland wins seven or eight games, it may fall too far back in the draft to grab its quarterback of the future in Round 1.
That is where Mayfield comes back into the picture. Without Watson on the cap sheet, the Browns would be in a better spot to chase a free-agent deal for Mayfield that could top $50 million per year.
There’s also the personal side. Mayfield was a fan favorite in Cleveland and helped deliver a major playoff win over the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2020. Monken coached him in 2019, so there is already a connection there.
Whether Mayfield would ever want to return to an organization run by Berry and Haslam is another question entirely. The split got ugly, and both sides have moved on since then. Still, the Browns have to keep every option open as they try to solve their quarterback problem.
If this roster wins enough games in 2026 to stay out of the top of the draft, a veteran like Mayfield could become a real next-step answer.
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