CLEVELAND -- To protect the quarterback or not protect the quarterback?
That is the question the Cleveland Browns would like answered by NFL officials after rookie quarterback Baker Mayfield was hit in the helmet in the fourth quarter of Sunday’s 26-23 overtime loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida.
After Mayfield ran for a 35-yard gain, he was hit in the ear hole of the helmet, and initially, a flag was thrown. However, the referee picked up the flag saying that once Mayfield left the pocket, he became a ball-carrier, and therefore, it was legal to hit him in the helmet, which drew a strong reaction from the Browns both during and after the game.
“They said he was a runner, and what I know, he should be protected once he starts to slide,” Browns coach Hue Jackson said.
“He says, ‘No, he is like any other normal runner who’s out there running,’ but I thought he slid and was down before he got hit. That’s what the guy said to me. He’s not afforded that protection out there, and that was different from what I know.”
Near the midway point of the fourth quarter, the Browns faced a second-and-26 from the Cleveland 24-yard line. Mayfield took the shotgun snap, and when no one was open, he pump-faked a throw to the right to freeze the defense, sprinted up the right hashmarks and across the Buccaneers logo in the middle of the field and gained 35 yards.
At the end of the play, Mayfield appeared to give himself up and initiated a slide that would have given him an added level of protection. However, safety Jordan Whitehead led with his helmet and drilled Mayfield right in the ear hole.
Mayfield took exception to the hit, and after springing up to his feet, got in Whitehead’s face and let him know it was not enough to keep him down.
“There’s a lot of stuff that’s being put on protecting the quarterback,” Mayfield said.
“Doesn’t seem like the Browns are getting a lot of calls. They can review it and say I was a runner, but I started my slide. That’s helmet-to-helmet contact. I felt it, but I got up and let the guy know he’s going to have to hit me a lot harder than that if he wants to affect me.”
Even still, on Monday morning, linebacker Christian Kirksey was among those questioning how Mayfield could be hit in the helmet when any contact above the shoulders to most quarterbacks around the league draws a penalty, regardless of where it occurs on the field.
Regardless of the call on the field on that fourth-quarter run, Jackson was not happy with how the Browns protected Mayfield, as he was sacked another five times for 29 lost yards.
Mayfield has been sacked 18 times since taking over the offense in the second quarter of a 21-17 come-from-behind victory over the New York Jets on September 20. After being sacked only three times in his first six quarters with the first-team offense, Mayfield has been tackled behind the line of scrimmage an average of five times a game over the last three weeks.
Despite the sacks, Mayfield completed 23 of his 34 attempts for 215 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions or fumbles. Mayfield finished the game with a 104.4 quarterback rating.
“Baker’s getting hit way too much,” Jackson said. “We’ve got to figure that out. He’s getting hit way too much. The ball came out a little quicker. He did run around and make some plays, but we’ve got to find a way to get this offense up and going in the first half.”
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