The Browns parted ways with receiver Odell Beckham Jr. months ago. The Browns still have not traded or released quarterback Baker Mayfield.
A pair of Browns defensive players recently addressed both players, and the dynamic that emerged between them in 2021.
“Odell’s gotta be one of the best teammates that I’ve had,” linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koromoah said on the Varsity House podcast.
“He’s probably the best teammate,” cornerback Greg Newsome II added.
Newsome later said this: “The crazy thing, Baker was a great teammate, too.”
At the risk of putting too much stock in conjugation, Newsome said of Mayfield “was” not “is.” Thus, even though Mayfield technically remains a teammate of Newsome’s, the casual choice of words arguably reflects a vibe that, even if Mayfield remains on the roster, he’s no longer truly a teammate.
Regardless, it’s more clear than ever that Cleveland wasn’t big enough for both Baker and OBJ.
“It was just so much, that relationship, those relationships just from the whole entire thing was just off, honestly,” Newsome said. “And yes it was distracting, but I knew like at the end of the day I still had to do my job.”
It’s nevertheless harder to do that job when two of the team’s leaders aren’t seeing eye to eye. It all ended with Beckham being released during the 2021 season. And with Mayfield seemingly destined to never play for the Browns again — even if they may need him in the event of a lengthy Deshaun Watson suspension.