CLEVELAND — The Cleveland Browns have not made many appearances in prime-time games since the Haslam family purchased the franchise in October of 2012, but with quarterback Baker Mayfield emerging as an NFL star, that may be changing soon.
According to Zac Jackson of The Athletic, the Browns are being looked at for the first Monday Night Football game of the 2019 season.
“I talked to someone who I really trust, maybe more than anyone else yesterday during a chance encounter at the Senior Bowl, and he thinks that the Browns are going to play the Monday night game to open it at Arizona,” Jackson said in appearance on “The Ken Carmen Show” on 92.3 The Fan Thursday.
“Baker vs. Kliff (Kingsbury), and so, the spotlight is going to be on from game one.”
Mayfield started his collegiate career at Texas Tech, where Kingsbury was the coach, but after suffering a sprained knee ligament in a win over Kansas, the quarterback felt “it was as if I hadn’t played for him, hadn’t done anything for him,” according to a TMZ report.
Mayfield decided to transfer to Oklahoma after the 2013 season, and in 2017, put together a Heisman Trophy-winning campaign where he completed 285 of his 404 throws (70.5 percent) for 4,627 yards and 43 touchdowns against six interceptions.
That was good enough to convince the Browns to select him with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, and he led the Browns to a 7-7 record in his 14 games played.
Mayfield saw his first regular-season action when the Browns hosted the New York Jets at FirstEnergy Stadium in Cleveland on Thursday Night Football on September 20, 2018, and the rest, as they say, is history.
With starter Tyrod Taylor suffering a concussion, Mayfield entered the game, completed 17 of his 23 attempts for 201 yards and led the Browns on four scoring drives, all of which combined to give Cleveland a 21-17 victory over the Jets, much to the delight of the home fans.
Later in the 2018 season, Mayfield helped the Browns to a second prime-time victory when they defeated the Denver Broncos on the road, breaking an 11-game skid against Denver that dated back to December 8, 1991.
All-time, the Browns are 24-32 in primetime games, including an 8-16 mark since returning to the NFL during the 1999 season.
The Browns are 15-16 in home primetime games, but have struggled away from Cleveland, posting a 9-16 record in night games on the road.
The Browns were last featured on Monday Night Football at FirstEnergy Stadium in Cleveland on November 30, 2015, when they lost to the Baltimore Ravens, 33-27, on a blocked field goal return for a touchdown on the game’s final play.