That may have been the single most impressive performance by a QB not named Pat Mahomes that I've ever seen on that last 98-yard drive to beat the Raiders.
Just feel like congratulations are in order and a show of respect for a job well done.
[doesn't hurt that he did it to the hated Raiders as well]
Seems like McVay should only let Mayfield practice and study for 1-2 days per week. Don’t let him overthink it. That’s when it goes to crap for him, lol
I'm pretty sure that besides Stefanski or whatever his name is, Haley is the only real NFL Offensive Coordinator that Mayfield has ever had, and that was what, half a season?
The coach of the Browns got his job because he was so good with Baker...so what happened?
Idk...but I don't think it's ALL Baker's fault. Cleveland had John Dorsey loading their roster, and Todd Haley at OC...and they let HUE JACKSON be the fucking head coach?
That is the problem with the Haslims, and I'm pretty sure after the Watson deal a LOT of owners are upset with the Haslims.
Just not a well-run organization. The Clarks are now the model of what modern-day NFL owners should be. [Reply]
I'm pretty sure that besides Stefanski or whatever his name is, Haley is the only real NFL Offensive Coordinator that Mayfield has ever had, and that was what, half a season?
The coach of the Browns got his job because he was so good with Baker...so what happened?
Idk...but I don't think it's ALL Baker's fault. Cleveland had John Dorsey loading their roster, and Todd Haley at OC...and they let HUE JACKSON be the fucking head coach?
That is the problem with the Haslims, and I'm pretty sure after the Watson deal a LOT of owners are upset with the Haslims.
Just not a well-run organization. The Clarks are now the model of what modern-day NFL owners should be.
Yeah, I hesitate to say exactly what happened other than what we really know, which is that he was drafted to a team that had won a single game in 2 seasons or something like that. And over the next 5 years he had 6 HCs and about as many OCs. Always a recipe for failure for any QB.
Fortunately for Baker , he had some players talented enough to help him get through all that shit.
But because of that start he’s probably always going to be a flawed QB. [Reply]
Yeah, I hesitate to say exactly what happened other than what we really know, which is that he was drafted to a team that had won a single game in 2 seasons or something like that. And over the next 5 years he had 6 HCs and about as many OCs. Always a recipe for failure for any QB.
Fortunately for Baker , he had some players talented enough to help him get through all that shit.
But because of that start he’s probably always going to be a flawed QB.
Well, we know that Hue Jackson said that there was more incentive in his contracts for hitting metrics for draft position and keeping player salaries down (i.e. keeping them from hitting incentives and bonuses) then there was for actually winning games, so I honestly don't understand it either.
I mean, you DO play to win the game, right?
I mean, I get it - everyone gets the same piece of 1/32 of the $18b in TV money...but not everyone is reinvesting that into their teams, so...idk...shit gets murky though. [Reply]
Originally Posted by rabblerouser:
Well, we know that Hue Jackson said that there was more incentive in his contracts for hitting metrics for draft position and keeping player salaries down (i.e. keeping them from hitting incentives and bonuses) then there was for actually winning games, so I honestly don't understand it either.
I mean, you DO play to win the game, right?
I mean, I get it - everyone gets the same piece of 1/32 of the $18b in TV money...but not everyone is reinvesting that into their teams, so...idk...shit gets murky though.
Agreed. The NFL is kind of a crazy institution, and some of its organizations are incredibly poorly run. And that stuff definitely rolls downhill, right down to the very bottom. People have already forgotten just how bad CLE was for rookie QB development just 5 years ago.
Along with the Jets, probably the absolute worst landing spot for young QBs. Most players for that matter.
Hell, you can’t even say that they’re any better right now.
Traded a shitty Mayfield after going all-in on Watson, a former first-rdr and former top-10 QB, had literally half a year to get him ready for his debut as a Brown, and what happens? Throws for 131 yards, no TDs, an INT, and a 54.3 P-rtg. Surrounded by a roster of 1s, months of prep, better athlete, and shits down his legs.
They should’ve fired Stefanski, gotten an QB whisperer like mcVay, and kept Baker. Lolz. They’d be $100 million richer and clinching a place in the playoffs right now. [Reply]
No one is disputing that Baker has a maturity problem, or that he's been wildly inconsistent as an NFL QB. This isn't about whether he'll even ever win another game. It's about this game.
You know what people came to love about Ryan Fitzpatrick? It's because he was another wildly inconsistent QB with a big personality. But when he was on an upswing, his heights as far as his on-field performances could be spell-binding.
He just never had the darker sides that Baker has. Baker takes things too personally and lashes out in regrettable ways. And has a host of other issues. We all know that.
But when he plays good QB, he can really do some incredible things with the ball.
JC, we've never seen anything like that in the NFL. I'm 53, and i know I've never seen anything like that.
We just saw a much-maligned flash-in-the-pan QB get cut, because he was washed up, that he couldn't play anymore, that he never could play, that his winning season and playoff win were illusions, because he'd become a lockerroom cancer, that among active QBs he was being ranked around 65th, not even a 1 or 2 on any team in the league. Take a second and think about where that would put you in your head for a minute.
Seriously, just 60 seconds and try and imagine that place.
Then get signed by the Rams, and then get on a plane on Tuesday with the playbook, land at 830 at night, drive an hour to the practice facility, stay up all night studying the book, then a few hours later go through one practice, two 10-play sessions, be told that he was the emergency QB and that he probably wouldn't play but of course be ready.
Between the practice and trying to install a couple more plays during the pregame warmup, Baker threw to just 4 of the eventual 9 players he would complete a pass to later. Then, after a single drive led by Wolford, he's told he's going in the game.
He doesn't really know the playbook. Shit, he really doesn't know the gameplan. He doesn't know any of the guys in the huddle. He doesn't even know most of the language. The only familiar thing he has is the protection adjustment verbiage and some play concepts.
So, just getting through the game without making a complete ass of himself was pretty amazing all by itself. He made some mistakes and missed some passes and reads, and it sure wasn't pretty, but he was respectable up to the two-minute warning.
He didn't have a single negative play. Baker Mayfield under the worst possible conditions with just 36 hours prep, no chemistry with his receivers, the 2nd-worst OL in football, a bottom-tier running game, oh, and don't forget, no WR1/2/3. Nope, he gets to try and throw to strangers that were slated 4/5/6 a just a couple weeks ago. Good luck with that, champ.
Not one fumble or INT, no Josh Allenesque 37-yard sack-fumble loony tunes shit.
He didn't know what he was doing, and he still somehow didn't panic and shit himself on a single play.
But then the silly bastard went and pulled off a minor miracle by actually driving 98 yards in 1:35, throwing those three improbably perfect passes that ended with Van Jefferson squeezing the game-winning TD on a 37-yard dart From Baker, perfectly in stride, to a guy he'd never thrown a ball to before that game. And btw, those three passes in terms of air yards and target window, set another NFL record. Against a team that had to have that game to keep their playoff hopes alive.
Oh, and by the way, between that practice session and that game-winning TD pass to Rookie Van Jefferson, Baker threw just 55 passes that day.
It's that story, as poorly written as it is, that makes watching these non-Chiefs games fun. We love Pat Mahomes because he writes wildly exciting stories very much like the one we witnessed last night.
Only a very few QBs will ever reach those kinds of heights of performance in their careers.
Even fewer will be able to repeat them at all, and even fewer with any consistency.
Icons like Joe Montana, John Elway, Dan Marino, Peyton Manning, Brett Favre, and of course Pat Mahomes, are legendary because they were among those very few that could do it over and over and over again.
It's why their elite.
Baker will never be one of those guys, never elite. It's just not in his DNA.
But neither was Ryan Fitzpatrick. But every once in a while, he could be as great as any QB before him. For about a half. Or sometimes even a whole game. But that's why I watched. Because you didn't know what you were going to get but when he turned into Fitzmagic, he could write very special stories.
Last night's game was one of the greatest football stories I've ever seen. It's even fitting that Baker Mayfield was the protagonist in it. Who else in Hollywood could you choose to play his part in that wildly improbable story? It's like he walked over from the Casting department, lol.
Anyway, off my pulpit now. Carry on with the inevitable personality-bashing, etc. because you're a bunch of short-sighted grumpy bitches. Do you guys ever just watch a game because they can be fun? Damn, I mean what's the point, then?
That was a great story.
Man, that was a fun drive.
"Hey, it's Hollywood - send in the script, we'll see what happens" - Al Michaels as the LA Rams offense takes the field for their final drive
Originally Posted by rabblerouser:
"Hey, it's Hollywood - send in the script, we'll see what happens" - Al Michaels as the LA Rams offense takes the field for their final drive
Best show on TV. That's why we ALL watch.
I don't know about 'ALL,' but that's why I watch. Love of the game. Was never a huge fan of Nolan Ryan, but always greatly respected his game, so that last no-hitter was a great watch.
Should also put this here: Sean McVay and Cohen are amazing QB coaches. No idea how they did it, but they obviously know how to put a new QB in the best possible situation to succeed. Great job by those guys. [Reply]
Before the snap, there was less than a 3% chance of that drive ending in a TD.
McVay only called one play in the entire game that was actually on the wristband Baker was wearing during the game. That play was called back on a penalty. [Reply]
