The Seattle Seahawks appear to still be in the mix to pull off a trade for Cleveland Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield. FanSided’s league insider Matt Lombardo cited an NFL executive who believes the Seahawks are “very much in the mix” for Mayfield. Lombardo referred to the Seahawks as the team that “may be the frontrunner” to trade for Mayfield.
“The Seahawks are very much in the mix for Baker,” the league exec noted.
The NFL insider explained that Mayfield’s market is “intensifying” as the NFL draft kicks off on April 28. Most recently, the Seahawks and Panthers have been the two teams consistently linked to Mayfield.
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The Browns Have Had ‘Backchannel Communications’ With Teams: Report
The anonymous executive revealed to FanSided that there has been “backchannel communications” between the Browns and “several teams” regarding the disgruntled quarterback. According to Pro Football Network’s Aaron Wilson, Mayfield is not expected to attend the Browns voluntary offseason workouts this week as the quarterback continues to seek a new home.
“According to the executive, there have been backchannel communications between several teams and the Browns regarding Mayfield as the NFL Draft approaches,” Lombardo added.
“…This upcoming season is final year of Mayfield’s contract, and he’s set to count $18.58 million against the cap in 2022, which could make Cleveland absorbing at least some of his remaining salary necessary for any trade to go down.
“Seattle, though, currently has only $15.7 million in cap space this offseason but balloons to a whopping $86.5 million in spending flexibility in 2023, plenty of room for an extension for Mayfield, especially after trading Russell Wilson to the Denver Broncos earlier this offseason.”
Panthers Have ‘Inside Track’ to Trade for Mayfield, Says Browns Insider
There continues to be conflicting projections on where Mayfield will ultimately play in 2022. Even Mayfield himself offered little insight into his future during his April 13 appearance on the “You Neva Know” podcast before unconvincingly labeling the Seahawks as his most likely landing spot.
Cleveland.com’s Mary Kay Cabot reported on April 16 that the Panthers have the “inside track” to land Mayfield. Much of the Browns’ negotiations with interested teams have likely centered around potential compensation as well as opposing front offices pushing Cleveland to eat a good portion of Mayfield’s $18.8 million salary.
“Panthers receiver Robby Anderson might want to start wrapping his brain around catching passes from Baker Mayfield this fall, because his club has the inside track to land the NFL’s No. 1 pick in 2018 over several interested teams, a league source tells cleveland.com,” Cabot detailed.
“…But whether Anderson likes it or not — and despite what Aaron Wilson of Pro Football Network reported last month as ”mutual disinterest” between the Panthers and Mayfield — it could happen sometime over the next couple of weeks.”
Seahawks Have Not Recently Been ‘Hot on the Trail’ for Mayfield: Report
As for the Seahawks, CBS Sports’ Josina Anderson reported the team is not “chasing [Mayfield] under the current* pretenses.” Cabot noted that Seattle “expressed some interest” in acquiring the quarterback but have not recently been “hot on the trail.”
The Seahawks’ rumored interest may get settled sooner rather than later as the NFL draft could serve as an unofficial deadline for a potential Mayfield deal. Interested teams can use the quarterback prospects as potential leverage against the Browns, showing the team they have other options aside from Mayfield to be their next QB1. Cleveland could opt to wait until after the draft for a deal in hopes that a team who missed out on their favorite quarterback target will be more likely to trade for Mayfield.
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