Odell Beckham Jr., Baker Mayfield's Fantasy Stock After Reported Trade to Browns

Odell Beckham Jr. was already a must-start in any fantasy football format, and his value may be climbing even higher in 2019 with his newest change of scenery.

ESPN's Adam Schefter reported Tuesday the Cleveland Browns acquired Beckham from the New York Giants, sending New York the No. 17 overall pick in the 2019 draft, a third-round pick and safety Jabrill Peppers.

Beckham caught 77 passes for 1,052 yards and six touchdowns with the Giants in 2018. Now, he'll be exchanging Eli Manning for Baker Mayfield. Together, Mayfield and Beckham could be one of the most exciting duos through the air.

According to Yahoo Sports, Beckham had the third-highest draft position among wide receivers (10.1), trailing Antonio Brown (5.1) and DeAndre Hopkins (8.8). The offseason is just getting started, but Beckham might be climbing toward the top of that list ahead of next year.

Midway through the 2018 season, Beckham threw some veiled criticisms toward Manning, in particular Manning's tendency to settle for shorter throws.

His arguments weren't entirely off-base, as Manning finished 16th in yards per attempt (7.46), which was a vast improvement over 2017. Manning averaged 6.07 yards per attempt, third-fewest in the league.

In his rookie season, Mayfield threw for 3,725 yards and 27 touchdowns in 14 appearances and averaged 7.66 yards per attempt. That last number deserves some context. It was seventh all-time among first-year quarterbacks with at least 300 passes, per Pro Football Reference.

Especially with Beckham aboard, the Browns seem much more likely to let Mayfield air it out. That, in turn, increases Beckham's big-play potential far higher than it would've been with Manning, who turned 38 in January.

Likewise, the Mayfield hype train is careening off the rails. The Browns offense already figured to have plenty of weapons surrounding the 2017 Heisman Trophy winner. Now, Cleveland is adding a three-time Pro Bowler.

Jarvis Landry and David Njoku had 976 and 639 receiving yards, respectively, in 2018, with Landry reaching his fourth straight Pro Bowl. The presence of Nick Chubb, who ran for 996 yards as a rookie, prevents teams from dropping a bunch of defenders back to guard against the pass as well.

Last year, Mayfield was knocking on the door of QB1 status. His 14 interceptions undercut his overall value a bit. Assuming he can be more careful with the ball, he should not only enter must-start territory but also could become an elite fantasy threat.