CLEVELAND, Ohio — Baker Mayfield has been down this road before with a boatload of talent on offense, and that Browns ship sunk to 6-10 in 2019.
He’s not about to let that happen again. He’s got some of the same stars around him, including Jarvis Landry, Odell Beckham Jr., Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt, but he’s learned the hard way that talent can be fool’s gold.
“We have a lot of great players, and this isn’t taking anything away from them because I love these guys,’’ Mayfield said Wednesday at his Procamps Youth Football Clinic at Gilmour Academy in Gates Mills. “But it doesn’t matter who we have, if we don’t have chemistry and we don’t do our jobs, none of it matters.’’
A fit and trim Mayfield has taken matters into his own hands when it comes to building on what they did in the offseason.
“I’d say not taking anything for granted when it comes to chemistry,’’ he said. “I think communication and overcommunicating just because we’re in the same system and we speak in the same terms, but you have to overcommunicate. I think that’s the most important part is leaving nothing left unsaid, and, to me, that’s where we’re at right now.”
For Mayfield, that will be a lot easier in the second year of a system for the first time in his pro career. Now that he’s mastered the offense, he can lead with more moxie and yell with more authority. He’s also running it back with the same varsity squad.
“The same system gives me more confidence,’’ he said, “just because I know how to push those guys now. Definitely going into minicamp, all the coaches and the players saw that I was way more comfortable in the system again. But [it’s] just hitting the ground running. Not to say that we’re going to start off right where we left it, but that’s always the goal is to continue to improve and build on what we have. We have to start fresh and that’s the most important part. Nothing’s going to be given to us. We have to earn it.’’
One of the biggest storylines for Mayfield is the return of Beckham, who suffered a torn ACL Oct. 25 against the Bengals. Beckham has rehabbed with a vengeance, and looks like his 24-year-old self in terms of speed and conditioning. He and Mayfield worked on their timing during Camp Mayfield in Austin, Texas last month, and also on a limited basis during minicamp.
“About a month ago I would have said that he looks very, very good, and I know after speaking with him that he feels even better,’’ Mayfield said. “So I’ll let you guys see that for yourself.”
Mayfield should also have better chemistry with tight end Austin Hooper, who had an adjustment period last year coming from Atlanta, and with David Njoku, who wasn’t all in much of last season but vows to be from the jump this year.
“The thing I always try and harp on is last year doesn’t matter, good or bad,’’ he said. “You have to start fresh. It doesn’t matter if your team was in the Super Bowl or you didn’t win a game. You have to start fresh and you have to build the foundation to focus on the next season.’’
With the Chiefs up first on Sept. 12, Mayfield stressed the importance of a strong start. Last season, one more loss and they would’ve missed the playoffs, so every game is crucial.
“It’s important, obviously, early in the year we have to be a lot better,’’ he said. “More consistent. When we get a lead, keep the aggressiveness, stay ahead, don’t let teams back in the game. I think just it’s a little bit of everything for us. I think it’s controlling the ball for me and just controlling the tempo as an offense as a whole.’’
While the offense will build on its success in 2020, the defense now has the talent to keep pace, with as many as nine new starters from new faces John Johnson III, Greg Newsome II, Jadeveon Clowney, Takk McKinley, Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah and Troy Hill.
“Good players, but great locker-room guys, great leaders,” said Mayfield. “You can tell that we were very young as a team as a whole, and to bring some of those veterans in on defense, just the leadership-wise that they help bring along to help with guys like Denzel [Ward] and Myles [Garrett] and some of our younger players.
“They’re leaders, and that’s the most important part. You have to have a team-first mentality always, and those guys that we brought in are doing just that.”
His message on that side of the ball, though is the same as on his side.
“It’s not just going to happen just because we brought in some guys [on defense] and we have the same people on offense,’’ he said. “We still have to go out and do our job.”
It’s that singular focus on winning that enables Mayfield to block out any thoughts about his contract extension, which could happen during the season.
“I genuinely do mean that I’m about winning and I think everything will play itself out,’’ he said. “I’m not worried about it at all because if we win, we’re headed in the right direction.”
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