Off-season thoughts (Vol. II)

The most anticipated surgery of the offseason is complete and Baker Mayfield is ready to roll. Well almost.

His left arm in a sling following surgery in Los Angeles Tuesday to repair a torn labrum in his non-throwing shoulder, the badly beaten-up Browns quarterback took to Twitter Wednesday and assured fans "this is not the end of my story," and labeled the procedure "a complete success."

It's the initial step to what Mayfield called "one of those steps to get back to my true self." Assume he meant the quarterback who led the Browns to the postseason in 2020 with a sensational second half of the  season and the club's first playoff victory in nearly two decades.

That all fell apart in the second week of this past season when he partially tore the labrum in his left shoulder  He exacerbated that by continuing to play when the club's medical team continued to green-light him only to see the labrum morph into a complete tear followed by a small fracture at the top of the shoulder. All that necessitated wearing a harness to protect the affected area.

During a good portion of the season, some critics (including me) wondered whether the harness inhibited Mayfield's throwing motion. Fans were told no, it didn't. Turns out it did. How do we know? Because offensive coordinator AlexVan Pelt admitted it.

"Hopefully, next year without the harness, you'll see Baker back to normal with his throwing mechanics," he said the week of the week 17 loss in Pittsburgh during which Mayfield was sacked an unconscionable nine times. "It (the harness) definitely handcuffed him a little bit with his ability to get that left side out of the way (on his followthrough)."

A little bit? He had trouble throwing to the left side of the formation as a result. For a majority of the season. That's almost like taking half the playbook away from him because he had problems properly executing plays to that side of the field.

This, as Mayfield asserts, is not the end of his story as a National Football League quarterback and is reasonably certain to produce a player much more like the 2020 version than the one who struggled and bailed one game shy of completing a very forgettable 2021 campaign. We'll get a better idea of how all this eventuates in several months when he begins throwing again.

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News: Browns defensive tackle Malik McDowell was arrested and jailed Monday in Deerfield Beach. Fla., on charges of resisting arrest with violence, aggravated battery of a police officer and public nudity near a preschool when he was seen lying down completely naked in the school's parking lot.

Views: The Browns had the opportunity to cut this troubled young man for any number of reasons (possible morals clause in his contract) when the news broke, but chose instead to issue the following statement:

"We are aware of the very concerning incident and arrest involving Malik McDowell and are in the process of gathering more information. We understand the severity of this matter and our thoughts are for the well-being of all involved. We will have no further comment at this time."

That's it. How much more information do they need? The story has gone viral with corroborating video. Possibly fearful of being accused of reacting in knee-jerk fashion, no further word has emanated from Berea.

It's hard to believe McDowell is still a member of the team after an incident that brought shame and embarrassment not only to himself, but the Browns, the NFL and the City of Cleveland. 

The 6-6, 295-pound McDowell, who played well in his first season with the Browns after signing a one-year contract, is an exclusive rights free agent as of March 1. The easy move would be to cut the troubled young man right now and move on. 

McDowell, 25,  arrived in Cleveland with loads of baggage. He was drafted by the Seattle Seahawks in the second round of the 2017 college draft, but never saw the field due to a series of off-the-field incidents that resulted in jail time.

The Browns, who needed help at defensive tackle due to the departure of Larry Ogunjobi and Sheldon Richardson, believed in giving him what amounted to a third chance. He started 14 games and was credited with 33 tackles overall, 19 solo, and three sacks, He was also a force in stopping opposing teams' ground games as the defense came alive in the second half of the season.

It's sad something like this occurred. It's also time for the Browns to move on, do the right thing and cut McDowell loose.