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In Week 2 of the 2021 season, Baker Mayfield suffered what turned out to be a catastrophic shoulder injury that marked the beginning of the end for his time with the Browns. Then-rookie wide receiver Anthony Schwartz shouldered a bulk of the blame for his role on the play, but he says it wasn’t his fault.
On the play in question, Schwartz was running a deep route to cut in the middle of the field on third-and-13 at midfield against the Texans. But he froze and Mayfield fired the ball right into the hands of safety Justin Reid. While Reid was returning the interception, Mayfield attempted to tackle him and injured his left non-throwing shoulder.
“Can’t just say ‘Oh, he stopped on his route it’s your fault,’” Schwartz said Monday. “There’s a lot of stuff that goes into that play. We both did something wrong on that play. I didn’t finish the play and I don’t think he [Mayfield] made the right read.”
“We were both wrong on that play,” he continued. “That’s one of the plays last year that I wish I could take back but end of the day. … I don’t think it’s in the right for me to take all that blame.”
The shoulder injury turned out to be a torn labrum in Mayfield’s shoulder and he eventually also played through a bone bruise on his knee and a bruised heel. The injury-riddled season led to the worst year of his career. He threw for 3,010 yards, 17 touchdowns and 13 interceptions in 14 games.
Eventually, the Browns traded for Deshaun Watson and dealt Mayfield to the Panthers where he’ll compete for a starting spot. Carolina and Cleveland will start the 2022 season against each other on Sept. 11.
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