DawgTalkers.net Forums DawgTalk Pure Football Forum Baker Cont.

He looks like Columbo.


He shaved half his mustache before coming out for the presser. He had some crappy Hulk Hogan wannabe fu-manchu going during the game.

very odd to be honest ... it’s like he’s trying to have a persona because he’s not even sure who he is anymore

I actually think that he had eye-black finishing off the 'stache.

That is even dumber than having actually grown the Hulk Hogan.... and, it also shows just how much he ISN'T focused on his job.

I was told he is focused on his job and that all the distractions only last for about 30 seconds. And his team loves it.

Just think about this:

We traded for Tyrod Taylor, Ok

This guy for his career is:

61.9% completion rate
9.536 passing yards
53 TD passes
20 INT
a career Qb rating of 89.6 (Might as well be 90)

We literally gave up on a veteran QB who was selected to the Pro Bowl two times in the past 3 years, who was/is a career 90's rated passer (Which puts him in the above average NFL QB tier) easily the best Qb we have had here in Cleveland since Kosar...for what?

"Oh we have to see our 1st rd QB play" "Oh Baker, Baker he is so great"

This right here is the absolute MORONIC reason why this team sucks year after year after year.

Please keep in mind that the previous week against the Saints, Taylor posted a 94.6 QBR, 73.3% completion rate on 22/30 pass attempts, threw a TD, and ran 26 yards.

I mean Judas Priest what more could you want!

We made a HUGE error in not putting Taylor back in after the Jets game. Absolute stupid decision. the only reason Taylor isn't starting now is because he has Phillip Rivers in front of him, pretty hard to bench a guy that will be in the Hall of Fame.

The Browns NEEDED Tyrod Taylor, we are a 4 win ballclub right now with him at QB. We would have had a real chance at the plyoffs.

God im so sick and tired of these peabrains running our team, they couldn't think their way out of a wet paper bag...replacing a two times Pro Bowl QB and career 90's rated NFL passer with a unproven rookie whoi wasn't ready is one of the most moronic decisions in the history of the NFL.

Don't give them the nonesense that Mayfield wasn't given a chance to win the starting job, yes he was, both Haley and Jackson agreed that Taylor was better than him, had Mayfield been head and shoulders better and beat out Taylor in camp, he would have been the guy. Fact is Mayfield shouldn't have played until he could beat out Taylor.

I firmly believe we win 7 games last year with Taylor as our QB too, and we would be a 4-5 win team this year with Taylor and we would be working on an extension with Taylor as we speak.

Taylor gave us the best chance to win and get out of this quagmire and we peed it away in the wind. It makes ZERO sense to replace a career 90's rated passer with 2 Pro Bowls in 3 years with a bad Buffalo team with an unproven rookie who couldn't even beat him out in camp....only the Browns do this type of crap and its why we suck year after year.

TT was done. he is still done.

I would be willing to bet a lot of money he doesn't start anywhere ever again.

It was said on the radio that Baker sported a fu-manchu back in high school and had success. Guy is grasping for anything to give him a boost.

I am 100% certain you think and believe that.

Anyone else watched the performance of the team last year with Baker and TT and could see how vastly superior in nearly every facet of play Baker was.

It doesn't take career stats or long written posts. Anyone and everyone (other than you apparently) knows that Baker outplayed TT last year by a country mile .... and all that without any preseason or early season 1st team reps.

Try a call to Manning or Montana or Marino or heck even Bernie Kosar! Pick their brains. These guys gotta love young QBs seeking advice.

TT was done because fans wanted the brand news shinny toy.

I liked TT and Haley,but I guess I was the only one in here.

Haley was right, Baker was not ready, he was/is not mature enough to handle success.

That third sentence does seem to be right, but doesn't make the first 2 accurate.

Do you not even remember those Tyrod Taylor games? That offense makes the one we ran yesterday look like a well-oiled machine.

Yeah, he’s trying anything ... and sometimes you can get into your own head. Instead of just ripping it and trusting himself, he’s patting the ball and hesitating.

I kind of expected him to struggle a bit early on this year, but he’s WAY worse than I imagined. It’s sad to think we may be looking for the one big piece once again

Yea, you lost me with the TT angle, bro.

TT was/is a competent QB that got caught in the middle of a coaching fight.

j/c...

he looks pudgy, pasty and looks like he's lost the will to live..a true clevelander

When Tyrod was replaced in 2018 he was completing less than 50% of his passes. Baker, after replacing Tyrod completed 63.8%, of his passes.

https://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/cle/2018.htm

Baker will be fine ….

Baker may never be able to eclipse 2018. Yes he may have peaked already
He cant handle the burden of putting a franchise on his shoulders

I don't buy that, at all.
Honestly, I'm not privy to what he sees and doesn't see on the field, so it's all just guesswork in my opinion, but I feel that he is smart enough and talented enough and all that, but I think that he is unfortunately still at the point where he is thinking too much and not simply playing fast on instinct. I think that once he gets things down enough and is back to playing fast, things will take off.

Additionally, I don't think the rest of his offense helps him all that much. I am grossly underwhelmed by both Landry and OBJ... I cannot back this up with anything concrete, but I feel like they are not always on the same page as Baker. I think they and the other WR are not always where they are supposed to be. I think Callaway has returned to his old form of not being able to be counted on as having reliable hands. I think the OLine has been disastrous this year, despite the many protests that they are playing well, I do not agree, at all. They've had their moments, but overall they have been quite lackluster... especially when they continually choose to kill drives with penalties. I think our TEs have been marginal, and frequently more a source of penalties than contributing to progress. I think that the O is predictable when we pull Chubb and insert Hillyard.

I think that this offense has become far too complex, and has too many plays that make no sense. Players are lost/confused, and are thinking instead of playing.

More like, "Browns fans at the start of the season" ... "Browns fans now".

Which then begs the questions: Is is too complex, or too convoluted?
Is it perhaps just more a case of too much, too soon for the players attempting to execute it?


I can see the potential in the offense IF we get the execution down. I mean, you just have to look at the number of plays where we had large gains called back because of stupid penalties, or the number of otherwise decent drives killed by penalties that we couldn't overcome.

I want to rant that Freddie should stick with keeping it as simple as needed, but at the same time, the players need to make that leap and get up to speed.

I don't know the answers.

j/c...

Baker never read anything but Landry on that. I dare say that he may be developing Couch-esque tunnel vision.

That should have been a pick.

Anybody here ever play quarterback? Even in jr. high?

If you're going to go that route, you have to apply it to every QB, not just Baker. Even the amateur fan knows what they are watching. It's confirmed through countless talking heads and video reviews littered throughout the interwebs.

One thing I will say which I think is one of the few positives and one small glimmer of hope related to Baker is that despite his shortcomings this year, the offense still seems to move the ball. This isn't a Kessler or Tyrod where you are begging them to throw the ball, consistently going three and out.

Just looking for some positive...

He also didn't turn the ball over. That's a positive. Should've been picked twice, I think... but still.

I will say, though. I had to step away from the TV about Midway through the 3rd, and I think I counted 2 total well-thrown balls. On-time and on-target so the receiver could run. 2 total. Dude was not accurate at all.

I think he is pressing, trying to force things. It happens with a young QB.
Trading for obj was dumb, I said it then. We didn't need him.

Chemistry, it's so important.

Letting hillbilly Fred own this team was assinine, I said it then, too.
Gregg Williams had us playing with discipline.

How we doing now?

Yeah, the hiring of FK has turned disastrous ... not just for this year, but because baker has really regressed and may be damaged goods

I don't think he's damaged goods. He'll be fine, but this franchise isn't helping him at all. Not in the way of coaching, not in the way of blocking, not in ANY way.

That needs to change right away or perhaps as you suggest, we're going to lose more than just the season.

There's no way he's damaged goods. That's just D4L being D4L. But you do have to start wondering how high his ceiling is. And whether he can improve or not. And you have to question whether he has that it factor. He basically has no signature wins as a professional. We were told he has moxie and leadership and guys gravitate toward him. Have we seen that at any point with the Browns so far?

I keep going back to something...a QB with the It factor...regardles of his coach, the scheme, the protection, the players around him...is going to rise above and make a play to help his team win games. Baker just doesn't do that. Deshaun Watson does it. He did it in college and he does it in the pros. If Baker is going bad from the start of the game, he stays bad through the whole game and never rises up. If he gets into a rhythm early and the offense is flowing, he plays reasonably well. But he just doesn't put the team on his shoulders and lead them to wins. He has one signature win in college and essentially none in the pros.

I even mentioned this before the season as a concern. It was an opinion that was not received well. I haven't seen anything to change my mind. A QB with the It factor delivers against the Rams and Broncos. He had the ball late in both games. Plays were there.

Winners win.

I wouldn't say Baker doesn't do that. He put the team on his shoulders and won games several times last year.

The kid can make all the throws and he was reading defenses last season. People seem caught up on Baker regressing without asking themselves what's different.

To watch him last year and then think perhaps his ceiling isn't that high, I'm not buying it. There's a myriad of things that have changed from last year to this year.

Baker has played and excelled at being a quarterback his entire life. I don't believe "that's it" for him, but if you want to believe it to be so, I guess I can't stop you.

I mean the defense had surrendered the most points Denver had scored all season, and this with a first time quarterback at the helm. Everyone wants to be quick to jump all over Baker, but we aren't losing all these games because of him. It's going to take its toll on any quarterback.

The bigger problem with this franchise lies in the coaching and front office and even ownership. We could go over to the Dorsey thread to discuss, but that's an unpopular conversation.

I'm glad that video got posted.

Look at Landry...yeah...he's open...at a point in his route that is 4 yards short of the 1st down...with a defender on him. As soon as Baker throws the ball, Landry cut up field to - presumably - get to the 1st down marker. Baker threw that ball to where he thought Landry was going with his route...right to where the LB was...making it look like a bad pass...they simply weren't on the same page...in the EIGHTH game of the year.

The author says to watch Odell...he's open. Wait...THAT'S the definition of open? The DB was right there with Odell. Baker has a cannon...but that's an easily-read, out route AT THE 1ST DOWN MARKER...that likely gets picked unless Baker trusts himself and everyone on the O to execute such that he can make a risky anticipation throw...requiring a level of trust and confidence that has yet to be seen this year.

Baker and Landry aren't on the same page...Baker and Odell arent on the same filed. These guys didn't forget how to throw and catch since last year.

If Landry continues his original direction instead of turning upfield, Baker hits him and he gets the 1st down. The field was cleared out in front of him had he kept running across

Yep...and there's only Odell on that side...with a CB...and Odell is a very good blocker. Landry cut off the route...AND...the route he took would have required a near-impossible throw to complete. As you said, if he stays on the original, apparent route then that's a nice 3rd down play that gets a first and maybe a lot more. Instead, it goes down as a Baker throw that should have been intercepted.

Mayfield is Andy Dalton 2.0

When I watch it a couple more times I can see why Jarvis made that cut but it was still a bad decision. I think he was trying to avoid the LB, but if he keeps going he either beats the LB or gets mugged for a PI call. Baker definitely had time to wait that extra second for him to clear the LB