Baker Mayfield will soon get the matchup many fans have waited years to see.
On Monday, the Cleveland Browns named Deshaun Watson their Week 1 starter, ending an extended competition with Shedeur Sanders and setting the stage for a Week 2 reunion in Tampa Bay.
Browns coach Todd Monken said the decision came after evaluating the full body of work from the offseason through training camp, joint practices, and preseason games.
For a road opener against Jacksonville, Monken believed Watson gave the offense its best chance to move the ball and score. Cleveland visits the Jaguars first, then travels to Raymond James Stadium on September 20 to face Mayfield and the Buccaneers.
Mayfield has not hidden what that date means to him.
“First home game. Week 2. Cleveland. About that action, boss,” he said on the 4th and South podcast. “I only played four years in Cleveland. It’s felt like forever. This is home now. It’s time to show them which home is better.”
The history is familiar to anyone who followed the franchise through the late 2010s. Cleveland drafted Mayfield first overall in 2018. He helped snap a nearly two-decade playoff drought in 2020 and delivered the team’s first postseason win since the 1994 season.
The relationship frayed during a painful 2021 campaign in which Mayfield played through a torn labrum, finished with 3,010 yards, 17 touchdowns and 13 interceptions, and watched the Browns finish 8-9.
That offseason Cleveland pursued Watson in a blockbuster trade with Houston, sending three first-round picks and additional selections while handing the former Texans star a fully guaranteed five-year, $230 million contract.
Mayfield requested a trade and landed in Carolina for a conditional 2024 pick. His first game as a Panther came against his old team. He rallied Carolina from a 20-7 deficit only to lose 26-24 on a late field goal. Watson was not on the field that day; he was serving an 11-game suspension.
Mayfield’s stay in Carolina lasted seven games. After a short stop with the Rams he rebuilt his career in Tampa Bay and has made it clear the Buccaneers now feel like home.
Watson arrives at the matchup amid visible tension with Cleveland’s fan base. He was loudly booed during a 31-7 preseason loss to Buffalo, completed 5 of 12 passes for 36 yards with an interception, and initially called the reception personal and disrespectful.
After being named the starter he walked those comments back, saying he understood the frustration. The organization invested heavily in 2022, he noted, yet injuries and inconsistent play have left results short of expectations. In 19 regular-season games with Cleveland he is 9-10 with 19 touchdowns and 12 interceptions.
Week 2 will not settle every argument, but it will put Mayfield and Watson on the same field for the first time and give both quarterbacks a chance to speak through performance rather than headlines.
