Baker Mayfield Trade Will Come at Huge Cost to Browns

NFL Draft week is here, and that means the trade market will kick into high gear as teams look to unload their veterans for shiny new rookies. This week's big event gives the Cleveland Browns a great chance to end their ongoing drama with quarterback Baker Mayfield and allow both sides to finally move on.

Pursuing a deal right now, though, is expected to come at huge cost to the Browns.

Baker Mayfield Trade Rumors

Tony Pauline of Pro Football Network has provided some intel on a potential Mayfield trade. Pauline revealed the "feeling around the league" is the former No. 1 overall pick will be dealt "on the second or third day of the draft."

He then added Cleveland is expected to pay "a large portion" of Mayfield's contract once he is traded. Pauline characterizes it as the Browns essentially paying for a draft pick, since whatever compensation they receive in a Mayfield trade will only be the result of them footing most of the QB's bill.

This report confirms Mayfield's trade market is almost non-existent, as there's no organization rushing to deal for the disgruntled fifth-year pro. It seems Cleveland agreeing to pay most of his 2022 salary is the only way the team can move on, which shows how far his stock has fallen.

Though this isn't ideal, it'll be necessary cost to put this drama behind both parties.

Isaiah De Los Santos is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Isaiah De Los Santos also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username zayyy05328. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.