Odds Heavily Favor Baker Mayfield Starting Week 4 for the Browns

• Mayfield engineers Browns comeback in NFL debut
• Victory halts Cleveland’s 19-game winless streak
• Taylor sidelined by second concussion of 2018

The Baker Mayfield era in Cleveland kicked off in style on Thursday night.

The top selection in this year’s NFL Draft made his highly-anticipated debut on Thursday Night Football one for the books. Mayfield led the Cleveland Browns to an entertaining 21-17 comeback victory – their first since Christmas Eve of 2016 – over the visiting New York Jets.

Despite Mayfield’s impressive prime time performance, Jackson has yet to name him as the starter in the Browns’ Week 4 matchup in Oakland.

That has not dampened the odds of Mayfield getting the call in next weekend’s date with the Raiders, which are currently perched at an extremely short -5000.

Odds to be Browns Starting QB in Week 4

Baker Mayfield Looked Like a 1st-Overall Pick

With his team down 14-0 in the second quarter, and veteran starter Tyrod Taylor forced to leave the game with concussion symptoms, Browns head coach Hue Jackson gave the nod to the reigning Heisman Trophy winner.

While Mayfield failed to connect on a scoring pass in his NFL debut, he proved effective immediately.

The former Oklahoma Sooners star went 17-for-23, racking up 201 yards and engineering a pair of lengthy scoring drives. The second, which ended with Carlos Hyde’s second scoring run of the game, proved to be the game winner.

Mayfield vs Taylor 2018 Stats Comparison

Does Tyrod Deserve to be Benched?

Taylor has produced mixed results in his first campaign under center in Cleveland.

The 29-year-old endured an uneven start in Week 1, completing just 15 of 40 attempts for 197 yards, but opened the scoring for the Browns with a 20-yard run. Taylor also managed to connect on a late fourth-quarter scoring pass to Josh Gordon that earned the squad a 21-21 tie with the Pittsburgh Steelers.

A sixth-round pick of the Baltimore Ravens in the 2011 NFL Draft, Taylor showed marked improvement in Week 2, racking up 246 yards and one touchdown pass in the Browns’ heartbreaking 21-18 loss in New Orleans.

Taylor also enjoyed success in a meeting with the Raiders last season, Cleveland’s Week 4 opponent, guiding the Buffalo Bills on a trio of scoring drives and a decisive 34-14 victory.

Tyrod Taylor’s History of Concussions

Thursday night’s injury extends a worrisome history of concussions, which includes a Grade 1 concussion suffered near the end of Buffalo’s 10-3 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars on Wild Card Weekend last season.

Pegged as a lengthy +2000 bet to get the call in Week 4, Taylor’s health status may make Jackson’s decision academic.

However, Hue Jackson has gained a reputation for making surprising decisions during his short tenure in Cleveland. The ferocious criticism Jackson received for his handling of rookie passer DeShone Kizer may still be fresh in his mind.

Mayfield’s History of Clutch Performances

As evidenced by his NFL debut, Mayfield is in a different class than Kizer. The 23-year-old proved to be a clutch performer during his three-year stint at Oklahoma, and furthered that reputation on Thursday night.

In addition to leading the Sooners to a College Football Playoff berth in 2015 and 2017, Mayfield has twice earned Sporting News Player of the Year honors, won the Heisman Trophy in his last year at Oklahoma, and finished last season with 4,627 passing yards and 43 touchdowns.

Hue Jackson says he needs to "look at the tape" before naming his starting QB for Week 4https://t.co/BjzqlrE8fD pic.twitter.com/KS7ENH16MU

— Around The NFL (@AroundTheNFL) September 21, 2018

However, with the Browns failing to record consecutive straight-up victories in 58 outings since November 2014, getting the starting call next week in Oakland may present Mayfield with the greatest challenge he has yet faced in his young career.

Either way, his odds to win 2018 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year honors are bound to get a lot shorter after his Week 3 performance.