CLEVELAND — Editor's note: the video in the player above is from a previous story.
With the holiday season approaching, Andrew Berry enjoyed a bit of a shopping spree this week. Over the course of Tuesday and Wednesday, the Cleveland Browns general manager signed offensive guard Wyatt Teller and Joel Bitonio to a pair of contract extensions worth a combined $104.8 million.
Considering that he's currently eligible for his own contract extension, it might only be natural for quarterback Baker Mayfield to feel like the odd man out. But when asked about Teller and Bitonio's new deals following practice on Wednesday, the No. 1 pick of the 2018 NFL Draft insisted that in addition to being happy for his teammates, his focus remains on the field.
"Two extremely deserving guys of those extensions. They deserve that," Mayfield said of Teller and Bitonio. "They protect me, they protect all of our guys. They're team-first guys. Joel's obviously been the consistent guy here for a long time and Wyatt's been for the past few years. We're very happy to have them extended, obviously.
"But that changes nothing for me. I'm still just trying to find a way to win games and everything else will take care of itself."
Mayfield's comments on Wednesday were similar to what he said in the offseason he first became extension eligible. But while many thought the 2021 campaign would bring clarity to his contract situation, at this point, it's only become more muddied.
With Mayfield suffering a torn labrum -- and later a fractured bone -- in his left shoulder, it's been difficult to evaluate his on-field performance in his fourth season as Cleveland's starting quarterback. Playing in seven of the Browns' eight games, the 26-year-old signal-caller has completed 66.7 percent of his passes for 1,917 yards, eight touchdowns and three interceptions.
But after getting off to a sluggish start to the 2021 campaign, Mayfield turned in his best performance of the season this past Sunday, completing 14 of his 21 pass attempts for 218 yards and two touchdowns in Cleveland's 41-16 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals. With the win, the Browns remain in the thick of the AFC playoff race -- a place they may need to remain if Mayfield is going to cash in like his offensive linemen did this week.