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Baker Mayfield to have surgery on torn labrum, not sure if he'll start Week 18

Liz Roscher
·Staff writer
·2-min read

It's been a tough season for the Cleveland Browns, and especially for quarterback Baker Mayfield. He's played nearly the entire season injured, but with the Browns eliminated from the playoffs, it's possible that's about to come to an end.

Following the Browns' 26-14 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers Monday night, Mayfield spoke to the media about his injury — a torn labrum in his non-throwing arm — and his plan to finally have surgery.

“I am going to have surgery,” Mayfield said via the Akron Beacon Journal. “I am going to get this shoulder fixed and be able to come back next year at 100%. That's been decided. Now when that's happening — that has not been decided. So I don't have that answer for you whether I play next week.”

Mayfield originally tore his labrum in Week 2. He was mostly able to play through it, but the season has been a struggle. On Monday night against the Steelers, he turned in a horrendous performance, completing 16 of 38 passes for 185 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions. With Mayfield injured and Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger struggling near the end of his career, it didn't amount to the best Monday night QB performance, and at times verged on unwatchable.

With Mayfield clearly having trouble on the field and the Browns eliminated from the playoffs, he's considering having surgery very soon and sitting out the Week 18 season finale against the Cincinnati Bengals. However, he said that hasn't been decided yet. His dismal performance against the Steelers probably isn't how he wanted his season to end, but the sooner it's over, the sooner he can start preparing for the next one. And with a 4-6 month recovery timeline, he'll need all the time he can get.