Skip Bayless: Baker Mayfield Was 'Stuck With' Odell Beckham Jr. and Jarvis Landry, Deserves No. 1 Receiver

Baker Mayfield and Jarvis Landry
Baker Mayfield and Jarvis Landry / Bobby Ellis/GettyImages
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The Cleveland Browns have had a busy few days. On Saturday, they traded for Dallas Cowboys receiver Amari Cooper before releasing Jarvis Landry on Monday. The receiver room will look a lot different in 2022 than it did in 2021. Both Landry and Odell Beckham Jr. were shown the door after once being counted among the league's best wideout pairings. Baker Mayfield, though, is still there, watching from the sideline as the front office shuffles weapons in an effort to find the ideal formula for his playstyle.

Skip Bayless noticed the unfoldings and took to Twitter to express his belief that Mayfield still deserves a legitimate No. 1 wideout after getting "stuck with" Landry and OBJ.

At this point, there is no disputing that neither player is a true No. 1 receiver in the way Bayless is describing here. Both have injury issues that raise legitimate questions about reliability and availability, the kind of things No. 1 receivers tend to have. OBJ was never the same guy in Cleveland he was in New York for one reason or another, and Landry caps out as an elite No. 2 option, which was true before he got released on Monday. They're both good players, but are a tier below the likes of Davante Adams, Cooper Kupp or Mike Evans.

However, to describe Mayfield as getting "stuck" with those two talents at wide receiver is not doing the situation justice in any way, shape, or form. It's fine if you want to say Jameis Winston was stuck throwing to Marquez Callaway as his No. 1 last year. Using "stuck" implies that it's a bad option with many alternatives. Mayfield obviously didn't mesh with OBJ or Landry to the extent that the Browns were hoping but not even he would describe that situation as getting stuck with them.

Beckham Jr. and Landry are good. Mayfield is pretty good. It didn't work. Sometimes that's all there is to it.

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