The quarterback carousel has been in full effect this offseason in the NFL and the ride looks far from over. Jimmy Garoppolo still hasn’t been traded, while the Cleveland Browns have added another quarterback to the market. One team that could still be looking for a long-term quarterback option is the Pittsburgh Steelers.
After their stunning trade with the Houston Texans to land Deshaun Watson, the Browns no longer need Baker Mayfield. Mayfield, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, was told that his trade request will not be honored by the team.
For now, he looks like the backup quarterback in Cleveland. With Watson still facing some uncertainty because of his off-field issues, the Browns may want to hold onto Mayfield so that they have a competent starter for however many games Watson may miss.
Ultimately, however, it would make the most sense for Cleveland to trade Mayfield. There is no real incentive to hold onto him, as they can use the money that would be saved from trading him to shore up other areas on the roster.
But, they need to be blown away by an offer and have their asking price met. Right now, their asking price is a first-round pick. The Seattle Seahawks, New Orleans Saints and Carolina Panthers could be potential landing spots for Mayfield, but it is hard to imagine any of those three teams offering a first-round pick for him.
One team to keep an eye on, however, is the Steelers. The Browns’ AFC North rivals have no interest in trading for Mayfield, but should he be released and become a free agent, they will ‘pounce’ on the opportunity to bring him in.
That is likely a worst-case scenario for the Browns. They know as well as anyone how emotional of a player Mayfield is and his play thrives off of it. Going to a division rival and playing against the Browns twice a season would certainly fire him up to beat his old team.
Pittsburgh signed Mitchell Trubisky this season to compete for the starting job with Mason Rudolph and Dwayne Haskins. Adding Mayfield to that mix would give Pittsburgh the deepest and most competitive quarterback depth chart in recent NFL history.
Bringing on Mayfield as a free agent would also enable the Steelers to use their first-round pick on a player at a position other than quarterback. Plenty of mock drafts have one of this year’s signal-callers heading to Pittsburgh, but Mayfield would represent a long-term option at the position if the team doesn’t believe Trubisky is anything more than a one-year stopgap.
