Baker Mayfield, Browns to Star on HBO’s ‘Hard Knocks’

After the Cleveland Browns had just the second 0-16 season in NFL history, a pretty strong argument could be made that they were a sideshow. You could make an equally compelling argument that a bunch of distractions is the last thing the Browns need as they try to dig themselves out of the AFC North basement.

Like, say, dozens of television cameras.nike nfl jersey cheap

So, of course, the team is going to be appearing on the 2018 version of HBO’s Hard Knocks.

Earlier this month, Browns general manager John Dorsey told ESPN 850 Radio in Cleveland that he had reservations about being in the TV fishbowl.

“I don’t think there’s anything good that comes out of Hard Knocks, but we’ll see,” he said, via Nancy Armour of USA Today.

If recent history is any indication, Dorsey may be on to something. In the last five years, teams that appeared on the show have a combined record of 35-45. Only one of those squads won 10 or more games: the Cincinnati Bengals in 2013.cheap nfl jerseys nike

At the NFLPA Rookie Premiere in Los Angeles, Mayfield told SiriusXM Radio (via Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com) that he thinks appearing on the series could be a good thing:nike nfl jerseys for cheap

“For me looking at it, and us as a team, I’d say it can be good if you handle it right. If you think about it as a way to get on camera and try to show off and do certain things and handle it the wrong way, then that can be very negative, it can be a distraction. But if you use it as a sense of, ‘OK, I got to block out everything else and just focus on playing ball,’ then that can be a great thing for us.”

That glass half-full attitude would be a lot easier to swallow if Mayfield didn’t have a history of courting controversy.

Being under the brightest of spotlights isn’t going to be easy.nfl jerseys nike cheap

And that spotlight is only going to help cement opinions on Mayfield (for better or worse) before he ever takes a snap that counts in the NFL.