Following Sunday’s loss to the New York Jets, which prevented the Cleveland Browns from clinching a playoff berth, quarterback Baker Mayfield said he “failed the team” after fumbling three times.
“Plain and simple, I have to hold onto the damn ball,” said Mayfield, who fumbled on Cleveland’s final two drives, allowing the Jets to hold on for the 23-16 victory. “We had exactly what we needed to win this game. And I didn’t do good enough. That’s it.”
Due to contact tracing from a player testing positive for COVID-19 on Saturday, the Browns had to play without their top four wide receivers. In their place, Cleveland instead had to rely on practice squad call-ups Ja’Marcus Bradley and Derrick Willies, along with Marvin Hall, who was claimed off waivers earlier this month.
Without their regular receivers, including Jarvis Landry, and starting linemen Jedrick Wills Jr. (illness) and Wyatt Teller (ankle), the Browns struggled offensively throughout the day.
Facing a stacked box as a result, running backs Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt averaged only 0.3 yards before contact, according to ESPN Stats & Information and combined to finish with just 39 yards rushing. Unable to establish the run or facilitate play-action, the Browns instead had to air it out with Mayfield, who ended with a career-high 53 passing attempts. Thirty-six of those passes went to tight ends or running backs, tied for the most by a quarterback over the last 20 seasons, according to ESPN Stats & Information.
Still, Mayfield refused to use those key absences, especially at receiver, as an excuse, and shouldered the blame for the loss.
“Put it on me,” Mayfield said, “for not doing my job, for not playing at a high level like I should have, for not getting these guys going and finishing out this game.”
Mayfield took only one question in his postgame video call, but also spoke for almost two minutes. Before walking off, he acknowledged that the Browns can still advance to the playoffs for the first time since 2002 and finally end the NFL’s longest postseason drought by defeating Pittsburgh next weekend.
“This one is going to sting for a day or two, but we have the Steelers to win and get in,” he said. “So, I’m going to roll with these punches. Backs against the wall and we have to win to get in. You know what, this group fought today, but I didn’t do enough, I didn’t play well enough for us to win. And that’s it.”