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Sports Pulse: Eagles avoid a three-game losing streak, while the Brown’s rookie coach looks like he may be in over his head. USA TODAY
Cleveland Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield abruptly ended a news conference Wednesday after growing frustrated with a reporter's line of questioning.
The questions came more than seven minutes into Mayfield's news conference and revolved around a sequence at the end of the first half of Cleveland's 27-13 loss to the New England Patriots on Sunday. Tony Grossi, a reporter with 850 ESPN in Cleveland, asked Mayfield about what he perceived as "a lack of urgency" on a two-minute drive before halftime.
"There was a penalty, so we were in negative yardage," Mayfield answered.
"No," Grossi continued, "but there was a lot of time between snaps."
"Well when the penalty happened, then we were behind the chains," Mayfield said, before growing visibly agitated. "No, no, no — stop saying 'but.' I just told you, the clock was running and we had a penalty. You want to give them the ball back? No. You don't play. You don't know it. That's just plain and simple."
Grossi concluded by asking if Mayfield was happy with the drive, which ultimately fizzled in Cleveland territory.
"Was I happy with the drive? No. We didn't score points," Mayfield said. "That's the dumbest question you could ask. What? Jesus, Tony."
Mayfield tweeted later on Wednesday to address his exit.
Baker Mayfield got into a heated moment with a reporter and walked out of his weekly press conference. #Brownspic.twitter.com/lSGxos3Ce8
— clevelanddotcom (@clevelanddotcom) October 30, 2019
Everybody wants to hear the truth until they actually get it.... I am who I am and always have been. Don’t call it emotional when it’s convenient and then passion when it fits. I care about winning, so yeah I’m frustrated. If I was to act like it’s okay to lose, then y’all would
— Baker Mayfield (@bakermayfield) October 30, 2019
say that I’ve gotten complacent. My sense of urgency is at an all time high. And if I offend anybody along the way... that’s too bad
— Baker Mayfield (@bakermayfield) October 30, 2019
It's worth noting that Grossi and Mayfield have not had a particularly warm relationship since the quarterback arrived in Cleveland. In January, Mayfield criticized Grossi for comparing Kyler Murray, who was the quarterback's former teammate at Oklahoma, to Johnny Manziel.
"He also said he would retire if the Browns drafted me," Mayfield wrote of Grossi on Twitter. "So does anything he say have truth to it? Couldn’t be any more wrong."
Nevertheless, Wednesday marked another frustrating moment for the team in 2019. The Browns, who entered the season with playoff aspirations, are now sitting at 2-5, and Mayfield has underperformed after a stellar rookie season. He's completed just 57% of his passes thus far in 2019, with six touchdown passes and 12 interceptions.
Contact Tom Schad at tschad@usatoday.com or on Twitter @Tom_Schad.
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