While he is content to wait another year before signing a contract extension, Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield wouldn't mind receiving one from the Browns before the start of this season. An extension may very well happen before the start of the regular season, according to one of Mayfield's agents, Jack Mills. Mayfield had his fifth-year option picked up earlier this offseason.
Mills said that he expects something to be done this summer as it relates to an extension for Mayfield, who is coming off a solid 2020 season that saw him throw 26 touchdowns against just eight interceptions. Mayfield's play helped the Browns win 11 regular-season games before the franchise won its first playoff game in 26 years.
"We're not going to be dragging it out," Mills told TheLandOnDemand.com's Tony Grossi. "I think there's been enough contracts done for quarterbacks lately that give us a pretty good idea of what the market is. And, of course, we know that the [salary] cap isn't going up this year but it's going up next year and next.
"We pretty much know what's coming on down the road and what's been done. We don't have any particular reluctance about doing a deal. ... But I think something will be done this summer. As far as trying to get a deal done, I don't know if it'll get done. It's something that would be pretty much in the team's control."
The offseason's biggest quarterback contract so far was the one Dak Prescott received from the Cowboys in March. The two-time Pro Bowler penned a four-year, $160 million contract that included a $66 million signing bonus and $126 million guaranteed. Prescott's deal was completed a year after Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes signed a record-setting contract that added up to $450 million over 10 years.
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Mayfield would be the first quarterback taken in the first round of the 2018 draft to receive an extension. Like Mayfield, Bills quarterback Josh Allen and Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson saw their fifth-year options picked up this offseason. Allen would be reportedly willing to work with Buffalo on his extension in order to help the Bills strengthen a roster that advanced to the AFC Championship Game in 2020. Jackson, the 2019 league MVP, is hoping to get an extension done this summer that would pay him roughly $40 million per season, according to ESPN's Jeremy Fowler.
While he may not be considered on the same level as Allen or Jackson, Mayfield is coming off a 2020 season that saw him flourish in new Browns coach Kevin Stefanski's offense. And while Mayfield's success last season likely quelled any remaining questions about his long-term future in Cleveland, Stefanski is hoping that Mayfield can make another significant jump in 2021.
"I hope it is significantly better," Stefanski said of what he expects from Mayfield this season, via ESPN's Jake Trotter. "He has heard these plays over and over again. We have streamlined concepts, and we have tried to adjust what we do based on his strengths and our players' strengths. I would hope he is much more comfortable from that perspective. That is what time allows you to do -- time together."
