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Robby Anderson Responds to IG Post, Says He Doesn't Want Baker Mayfield on Panthers
April 15, 2022
Wide receiver Robby Anderson has no interest in seeing the Carolina Panthers acquire quarterback Baker Mayfield from the Cleveland Browns.
Anderson made his feelings known after NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported Friday on The Pat McAfee Show (h/t Ryan Glasspiegel of the New York Post) that the Panthers are the "most likely" landing spot for Mayfield.
Per Anthony Rizzuti of Panthers Wire, Anderson commented "Nooooo" on an Instagram post about the Mayfield report by Panthers fan account @panthers.way.
Another fan account, @panthersnat1on, made a post about his comment, and Anderson responded, "Facts."
Mayfield became expendable last month when the Browns acquired quarterback Deshaun Watson in a trade with the Houston Texans and signed him to a massive new contract.
Even before the trade was made, Mayfield suggested in a Twitter statement that he wasn't necessarily happy amid rumors that the Browns were pursuing Watson:
At that point, it seemed possible the Browns would move on from Mayfield, but once the trade occurred, it became a certainty.
While trading or releasing Mayfield is going to happen, the Browns haven't been able to reach a deal, and many quarterback-needy teams have already addressed the position via trade or free agency.
One team that clearly could still use an upgrade, however, is the Panthers, who are currently slated to enter 2022 with Sam Darnold as their starter.
The Panthers acquired Darnold from the New York Jets prior to the 2021 season, and while things started off well for him and the Carolina offense, they went south quickly.
Darnold struggled through injuries and poor play, and the 24-year-old went 4-7 as a starter while completing 59.9 percent of his passes for 2,527 yards, nine touchdowns and 13 interceptions. That marked the second year in a row that Darnold threw more picks than touchdowns.
Anderson's lack of desire to see Mayfield in Carolina could have something to do with loyalty to Darnold, as they played together with the Jets from 2018 to 2019 before being reunited last season.
Even so, Mayfield has enjoyed significantly more success than Darnold during their four-year NFL careers thus far.
Mayfield went No. 1 overall in the 2018 draft, which was two picks ahead of Darnold. He also owns a career record of 29-30 as a starter, compared to Darnold's 17-32 mark.
Most notably, Mayfield led the Browns to the playoffs in 2020 and a wild-card win, marking Cleveland's first postseason appearance since 2002.
Last season, Mayfield dealt with an injury to his non-throwing left shoulder for much of the year and struggled to the tune of 3,010 yards, 17 touchdowns and 13 interceptions.
That was still better than Darnold, and the expectation is that Mayfield may perform closer to his 2020 level when he threw 26 touchdowns and just eight interceptions, provided he is healthy in 2022.
If the Panthers don't acquire Mayfield or another veteran quarterback, however, it could be a sign that they intend to select a young signal-caller such as Liberty's Malik Willis, Pittsburgh's Kenny Pickett or Cincinnati's Desmond Ridder with the No. 6 overall pick in the 2022 draft.