Baker Mayfield on struggles to connect with Odell Beckham: 'It has to come naturally'

Almost everything that could go wrong went wrong for the Cleveland Browns in their loss to the Baltimore Ravens, but critics have called out the offense for not getting Odell Beckham Jr. involved, as the star receiver only had 22 yards on three catches. But quarterback Baker Mayfield says he won't force the ball to Beckham despite the struggles.

"I think it has to come naturally," Mayfield said. "Obviously, you game-plan and you scheme up things to get the balls in your playmaker's hands. But then when it comes to game time they're gonna give us certain looks that might take that away. We had a couple plays for him early on and the Ravens did a good job of taking that away, so we had to go through the reads and get the ball in other guys' hands."

Mayfield is right about not overreacting to early struggles, but with Beckham trade rumors already starting, he may not have time for the offense to "come naturally." Beckham has expressed his excitement to be in Cleveland before the season but during the game, the receiver looked frustrated at not being targetted when he was open. 

The Browns have been one of the most hyped teams in the NFL coming into each of the last two seasons but so far they have failed to meet expectations. If Mayfield is unable to get the offense going, he could begin to find himself on the hot seat, as Cleveland could conceivably move on from him after the 2021 season.