Quarterback Baker Mayfield and the Cleveland Browns are not satisfied. They are grateful, and they are happy. But the Browns remain strictly focused on their first playoff game since 2002. Yes, the team and all their fans deserved to relish in every fist pump, every scream, every howl and every dance. Perhaps more so than any other team. Now though, it’s onto the next one. As it has been this entire season.
Baker Mayfield, Cleveland Browns Not Satisfied
The NFL’s longest playoff drought is now over, but the Browns are not easing up on their game. Not one bit. “We’re not satisfied,” said Baker Mayfield. We’ve worked extremely hard to get here … but we’re on to the next one. We’re not satisfied.”
Bigger Goals Than Making The Playoffs
The team knows their 17th game is even more crucial than the ones before it. Kevin Stefanski was clear on where their mindset is. “There is work left to be done. The goal was never just to make the playoffs.”
Their path has always been challenging, and 2020 threw more challenges their way. The final and biggest game of the regular season saw an absence of six key players – like cornerback Denzel Ward and linebacker Harrison Bryant – all placed on the Reserve/COVID-19 list. Ward had played his best season with the Browns, so it hit a little harder to not have him on the field.
The Playoff Mentality Was Already In Place
As Mayfield said earlier in the week, “The mentality here is we are in our playoffs just one week early. It’s win or go home. We just have to go out there, execute it and do our jobs.”
And they did. For the second week in a row, the Browns had to dig deep into their depth chart. It didn’t matter that they were relying on players like Robert Jackson or Jacob Phillips, a rookie who had only started two games.
It All Worked Out Somehow
Everyone chipped in to secure this victory against one of their biggest rivals. Mayfield, after fumbling three times the week before, finished 17-of-27 for 196 yards, a touchdown, and zero turnovers. Nick Chubb rushed for 108 yards and a touchdown. Jarvis Landry recorded a team-high five receptions for 51 yards and a touchdown that gave Cleveland their biggest lead of the game. Cornerback M.J. Stewart Jr. set the Browns up for their third touchdown by intercepting Mason Rudolph. And the entire secondary forced an incompletion that prevented Pittsburgh from tying the game.
There’s Work Left To Do For Baker Mayfield, Cleveland Browns
Myles Garrett explained their motivation. “We’re just paying [the fans] back for all of the time and the effort they have invested,” defensive end Myles Garrett said. “There are so many Browns [fans] all over the world who were happy to see us get this win and finally get into the dance.”
Now, as Stefanski says, “It’s not over. We have work left to do. I like how this football team responds when their back is up against the wall. We will just keep grinding on this thing, and we will wait for the reflection much later.” That reflection will only come when there are no more games on the schedule.
Main photo:
Embed from Getty Images
