CLEVELAND — Editor's note: the video in the player above is from Jan. 20, 2021.
Deshaun Watson's reported trade request from the Houston Texans has led to plenty of speculation from fanbases across the league -- including some teams that already have a quarterback.
One such franchise that has seen its fans ponder the possibility of a potential blockbuster trade to acquire Watson is the Cleveland Browns, who are coming off their best regular-season record and first postseason victory since 1994.
That speculation -- which included a blog post from the Browns blog Dawg Pound Daily titled "The Cleveland Browns need to think about Deshaun Watson" -- caught the attention of Cleveland's current quarterback, Baker Mayfield. And as one might expect, the No. 1 pick of the 2018 NFL Draft didn't receive the article kindly, taking to his Twitter account to respond.
"Some of y'all 'browns' are funny," Mayfield posted, retweeting the article along with an "OK" emoji.
In drawing attention to the post, however, Mayfield only amplified the discussion, making it fodder for sports talk radio and morning debate shows such as ESPN's "Get Up" and "First Take."
For what it's worth, there has yet to be any credible reporting linking the Browns to Watson, who Texans general manager Nick Caserio said he has "zero interest" in trading on Friday. Meanwhile, Cleveland general manager Andrew Berry has had nothing but praise for Mayfield entering an offseason in which he's eligible to sign an extension with the Browns.
"He did an excellent job this year. He led us to our first playoff appearance in eons," Berry said of Mayfield earlier this month. "He got us to 12 wins, played winning football all year, developed a really strong relationship with [head coach] Kevin [Stefanski] and the offensive staff. And really, as I mentioned last week, he really grew on a weekly basis both on and off the field.
"So we're really, really pleased with him. Look, we wouldn't be where we were at the end of the season without his performance. He had a really strong season."