Baker Mayfield on rumored expletive used towards Cleveland Browns: ‘I didn’t say it’

CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) - Carolina Panthers quarterback Baker Mayfield cleared up a rumor that he reportedly directed an expletive towards his former team.

“First, I didn’t say it,” Mayfield said after Wednesday’s practice. “Everybody’s going to write whatever story they want, and there’s history that I played in Cleveland the last four years. I’m an extremely competitive person. Everybody knows that. I want to win in everything I do. That’ll never change.”

Mayfield described how he spoke with a sideline reporter after that Panthers’ preseason game against the Buffalo Bills, but the conversation did not include explicit language directed at his former team.

“Now, that is not how I phrased it,” Mayfield added. “That’s not even what I said.”

Cleveland Browns cornerback Greg Newsome II was asked about the situation on Wednesday.

“When I first heard it, I did not think anything about it,” Newsome said. “He is a competitor. We had him last year, and I know how he is as a person. He is a competitor. I did not feel any type of way about it.”

The Browns traded the former No. 1 overall pick from the 2018 NFL Draft to the Panthers in July after acquiring Deshaun Watson and signing him to a record-breaking contract.

Jacoby Brissett is expected to start for the Browns when they face Mayfield and the Carolina Panthers on the road for the first game of the season on Sept. 11.

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