Must or Bust? 2020 Is A Prove-It Year For Baker Mayfield and Sam Darnold

The 2018 NFL Draft Class featured a lot of talent at the quarterback position, with five quarterbacks taken in the first round. Lamar Jackson has already won an MVP and Josh Allen led his team to the playoffs in year two, while Josh Rosen has yet to really make any type of impact in the NFL. Then there are the other two quarterbacks, who are stuck in the middle: Browns QB Baker Mayfield and Jets QB Sam Darnold. Both have shown flashes of success, but have not gotten their teams to the next level when it comes to winning. Both are going into year three, and this may be the biggest year for the two quarterbacks. Success can lead to a big contract and a playoff appearance, while failure can lead to the teams looking to move on.

Sam Darnold

The first of the two is Jets QB, Sam Darnold. Darnold probably had the highest expectations going into the draft, but the former USC standout has not lived up to his expectations thus far. He has thrown 36 touchdowns and 38 interceptions with 5,889 passing yards and a career record of 11-15. Not the worst numbers, but mediocre for a guy that was supposed to take the league by storm. To be fair, Darnold has not had much help behind him. He has had a depleted offensive line, minimal weapons, and no steadiness at all. He also was sidelined with mono in 2019, but still managed to go 7-6 in 13 games. You can argue that he could have led the Jets to a winning record if he was healthy the entire year, and 2020 will tell a lot of that story. Darnold has not been awful, but he has not met the expectations that many scouts had for him. Whether it turns into wins or not, Darnold needs to have a big season in 2020, which will most likely turn into wins for the New York Jets.

Baker Mayfield

For Baker Mayfield, it has been a tale of two seasons. In year one, the former Heisman Trophy winner threw 27 touchdowns, 14 interceptions, and 3,725 passing yards in only 14 games. His 27 touchdowns broke the rookie record for most passing touchdowns in a single season, he finished second in the Offensive Rookie of the Year voting to RB Saquon Barkley, and the hype was starting to build up. In year two, some analysts picked him to win MVP, and many picked the Browns to go to the playoffs. But the hype ultimately failed. Cleveland went 6-10, and Mayfield regressed. He threw 22 touchdowns, which is not awful, but the 21 interceptions that accompanied them are what made it such a bad season. There were still positive moments, but if the Browns want to be successful in 2020, Baker needs to limit his picks and play better overall. Kevin Stefanski will be taking over as head coach, which is a match made in heaven for Mayfield. Stefanski loves to run play action, and Baker is most successful when the play-action is called. Like I said, a match made in heaven. The Browns upgraded their offensive line and gave Mayfield all the pieces he needs to succeed in 2020. Now it is just a matter of going out and doing it.

Must or Bust?

As stated before, this year is the biggest for the two quarterbacks. One that can be called “make or break”. I predict that neither quarterback will break, and both are going to finally break through and reach the caliber of a franchise quarterback. For Darnold, I believe that if it were not for mono, the Jets and Darnold would have both had quite different seasons in a good way. He had a winning record, and who knows what could have happened if he did not miss those three games. When he was on the field, he played well, and I think he is only going to get better as he gets more comfortable. The AFC East is now wide open, meaning a good season from Darnold may be enough to get the Jets to the playoffs. For Baker, the pressure is all on him in 2020, but I do not believe that it will phase him. The coaching change was the right move, and will give the Browns a more disciplined attitude in 2020. Another year of experience and maturity will do wonders for the young quarterback. All Mayfield must do is limit his interceptions, and the success will follow.

If I were to pick one, I would pick…

If I had to pick between the two to be my quarterback in 2020, I would probably lean towards Baker Mayfield. Their talent is similar, but I just feel the situation and the supporting cast is better in Cleveland than in New York. Regardless, both quarterbacks are poised to break out, and it will be exciting to watch these two perform in the upcoming season.

Stats from profootballreference.com