Given Alex Van Pelt Browns Connection, Should Patriots Sign Baker Mayfield?

If the New England Patriots don't want to risk missing on another rookie quarterback they could sign a veteran quarterback like Baker Mayfield, who has played under new offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt before.

Three weeks after the news broke that the New England Patriots hired Jerod Mayo as their new coach, he quickly found his three coordinators. This included the long-awaited hiring of offensive coordinator after Bill O'Brien's return to Foxboro, which lasted just one season before he fled to the college ranks for the same job at Ohio State. 

However, with Mayo's hiring of now-former Cleveland Browns coordinator Alex Van Pelt, fans can finally get a sense of what things will look like offensively in New England. Given Van Pelt's coaching ties to the West Coast offense, he is expected to bring a similar system to Foxboro... and maybe a veteran quarterback?

Despite the recent hints from Mayo that the Patriots will use their No. 3 overall pick in the NFL Draft, Van Pelt is expected to have a "heavy hand" in picking who is under center next season, per NFL.com's Ian Rapoport. 

This could open the possibility of the Patriots targeting a familiar face for Van Pelt in current Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield. The two spent time together in Cleveland, albeit for three seasons, before Mayfield was traded to the Carolina Panthers in the ensuing offseason. 

Oct 11, 2020; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield (6) talks with head coach Kevin Stefanski and offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt during the second half against the Indianapolis Colts at FirstEnergy Stadium / Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports

Although that trade may suggest that Mayfield wasn't the guy that Browns coach Kevin Stefanski and Van Pelt envisioned as their franchise quarterback, the former No. 1 overall pick could make the latter think again after a resurgent season with the Buccaneers.

Following a rocky 2022, where the Panthers released Mayfield after a 1-5 start to their season, he signed with the Los Angeles Rams, who needed quarterback help after injuries sidelined Matthew Stafford. Mayfield would spend the remainder of the season in L.A. working with Sean McVay and performed well enough to land a contract with the Buccaneers last offseason in free agency.

Despite having the big shoes of former Patriots quarterback Tom Brady in Tampa, Mayfield didn't let that stop him from having a career year. The 28-year-old threw for 4,044 yards, 28 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions in 17 games as he led the Buccaneers to a 9-8 regular season record.

Mayfield even helped the Buccaneers win a playoff game, beating the Philadelphia Eagles 32-9 in the Wild Card before falling to the Detroit Lions in the next round.

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His strong play has him set to be one of the top quarterbacks available in this offseason's free agency period, where the latest contract projection from Pro Football Focus has him worth $25 million per year.

The Patriots certainly have the cap space to do it this offseason, with a projected $66 million, according to OverTheCap. If finding someone to fill the void left behind by Brady is the goal at quarterback, then why not get someone with experience already doing it?

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