On Tuesday, Baker Mayfield made waves when it appeared he had taken a shot at New York Giants rookie quarterback Daniel Jones while being profiled by GQ.
But taking to Instagram after practice, hours after the piece was first released, the Cleveland Browns quarterback denied doing just that.
"This is not what I said.... just so we’re clear," Mayfield wrote underneath an Instagram post on the Barstool Sports account. "I also said I was surprised I got drafted number one. Then was talking about the flaws in evaluating QB’s. Where I brought up winning being important. Reporters and media will do anything to come up with a click bait story. Heard nothing but good things and wish nothing but the best for Daniel."
Whether Mayfield feels as though his quotes were taken out of context or plainly made up remains unclear. In his piece for GQ, Clay Skipper wrote the following of an interaction with Mayfield:
Near our booth, a SportsCenter segment about the New York Giants catches Mayfield's eye. “I cannot believe the Giants took Daniel Jones,” Mayfield says, about New York's much-maligned draft-day decision to spend the sixth pick on the quarterback from Duke (whose college record was a measly 17–19). “Blows my mind.”
I tell Mayfield that I'm mystified that so many supposedly expert quarterback scouts seem unable to predict what makes a good NFL quarterback.
“Some people overthink it,” Mayfield says. “That's where people go wrong. They forget you've gotta win.”
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Giants coach Pat Shurmur said of Mayfield's comments: "That's not original commentary, is it? Baker's the latest in a long line of critics of that pick. If I were Dan, I wouldn't even pay it any mind."
Asked if his quarterback's comments created a bigger "bullseye" on the Browns' backs, Cleveland head coach Freddie Kitchens responded: "We don't care. We don't care. It's already on there, so it doesn't matter. We'll be ready to play. I don't know what a bullseye is. Anybody know?"
But despite having his head coach's support, Mayfield still felt inclined to tell his side of the story.
