Are Baker Mayfield and the Browns better off reconciling?

The Cleveland Browns–Baker Mayfield saga might feel long and confusing if you haven’t kept up with every update.

The relationship between Mayfield and Cleveland has deteriorated steadily since the season ended, especially after the Browns traded for and signed Deshaun Watson.

And while all the twists and turns seem to point toward Mayfield leaving town for a new team, the quarterback has kept another possibility on the table — reconciling with his team.

And the possibility that the NFL could suspend Watson for the entire 2022 season is one reason that option seems more plausible than ever.

Related: As Deshaun Watson’s hearing looms, Browns’ all-in strategy could backfire

Mayfield seems to recognize that and said he isn’t ruling out the possibility of a reconciliation. But he emphasized that the Browns would have to initiate the discussion and that he’s currently planning to move on.

“I think for that to happen there would have to be some reaching out,” Mayfield told reporters at a youth football camp in Norman, Oklahoma. “But we’re ready to move on, I think. On both sides.”

Does Mayfield have a point? With Cleveland’s current situation, playing the chance of Watson getting suspended for the season, would it be wise for them to reach out to Mayfield to play another season?

On Tuesday’s edition of “The Herd,” Joy Taylor and Josina Anderson discussed why Cleveland should consider keeping Mayfield around.

Is a return to Browns the best scenario for Mayfield?

Josina Anderson joined Joy Taylor on “The Herd” to discuss Cleveland Browns QB Baker Mayfield.

“The idea that Cleveland is making the right decision with moving on from Baker Mayfield is the first thing that gives me pause,” Taylor said. “They don’t do anything right. They are probably going to have to pay a considerable amount of his $18.9 million salary to move him.”

Taylor added: “There are no suitors for Mayfield. The only two teams that we’ve heard about are Seattle and Carolina, and the reports, in unison with both of those teams, is that neither one wants to pay for Baker Mayfield.”

Taylor is skeptical about whether there’s a real future for Mayfield in either Carolina or Seattle, as both teams will likely struggle. Secondly, both teams will likely be in the quarterback sweepstakes next season.

While it might seem sensible for Cleveland to retain Mayfield, there are also reasons for Mayfield to swallow his pride and play another season in Cleveland.

“It would be awkward, yes. Would it be complicated? Yes. But from Baker’s perspective, you have no market,” Taylor added. “This would be an opportunity to show that you can be a leader in a very difficult situation, which no one thinks right now. That you have learned the lessons of what it means to be a franchise quarterback in the league, and you can restore the image of how talented you are.”