BEREA, Ohio — As the Cleveland Browns move forward with their new quarterback Deshaun Watson, the future of Baker Mayfield remains uncertain—but one thing we do know now is that he will not be in attendance during mandatory minicamp next week after being excused by the team.
Mayfield and the Browns worked together to determine the best course of action in regards to the mandatory practice sessions, deciding it was in both parties' best interest if he remained away from the facilities.
The excusal is not much of a surprise after the tumultuous offseason Mayfield and the Browns have had that imploded after the team began heavily pursuing Watson, and later landed him in a trade with the Texans.
Now, with the mandatory portion of offseason workouts approaching, the team and Mayfield needed to have a discussion about what their plans were.
"Obviously that was a decision made between our organization, Baker and Baker's team. Felt like it was the best decision for both sides," said head coach Kevin Stefanski. "I'm not going to get into my communication with the players but just felt like that was the best decision for the organization and for Baker."
Mayfield's teammates said they've been preparing for his absence for some time, realizing that he'd likely not be returning to the facilities.
"Obviously you look at the roster and he's still there. He's not present here but I think it's just a business, I think we all understand that now more than ever. We've got three quarterbacks here now so it's kind of leaning towards him not being here," said safety John Johnson III. "I wouldn't say we're mentally separated but we are kind of prepared for him to not be here."
The Browns host mandatory minicamp Tuesday, June 14 through Thursday, June 16 with practices being held not only at CrossCountry Mortgage FieldHouse in Berea, but sessions at FirstEnergy Stadium and down at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton as well.
Camryn Justice is a reporter at News 5 Cleveland. Follow her on Twitter @camijustice.
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