Browns' Baker Mayfield Says He's Taking Break from Social Media: 'Time to Get Right'
January 26, 2022
Cleveland Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield announced Tuesday night that he will be abstaining from social media for the time being.
Per ESPN's Jake Trotter, Mayfield made the announcement via the following Instagram post:
Mayfield underwent surgery last week after dealing with a torn labrum in his non-throwing shoulder for much of the 2021 season.
After undergoing surgery, Mayfield released the following video to provide an update on his status:
The 2018 No. 1 overall draft pick said he plans to "get back to my true self" once he is fully recovered in four to six months.
Mayfield suffered the shoulder injury in Week 2 and then proceeded to struggle through an up-and-down season the rest of the way for a Browns team that went 8-9 and missed the playoffs.
In the 14 games he started, Mayfield went 6-8 and completed 60.5 percent of his passes for 3,010 yards, 17 touchdowns and 13 interceptions.
It represented a pretty obvious drop-off from 2020 when Mayfield completed 62.8 percent of his attempts for 3,563 yards, 26 touchdowns and a career-low eight picks.
He also led the Browns to an 11-5 record, their first playoff berth since 2002 and their first playoff win since 1994.
Mayfield is shutting out the noise from social media as he gets set to rehab and prepare for perhaps the most important season of his career thus far.
In 2022, Mayfield will play out the final season of his rookie contract, and he will make $18.8 million after the Browns exercised the fifth-year option in his deal.
The Browns have yet to sign Mayfield to an extension, however, and the organization may be waiting to see how he bounces back in 2022 before doing so.
With that in mind, 2022 is a do-or-die season for Mayfield in terms of whether he is Cleveland's long-term answer at quarterback or he has to look for opportunities elsewhere.