The quarterback always commands attention, no matter the football team. It's a hugely important position, of course, and the team often goes as far as its signal-caller can take it.
But it's not every day when a head coach is asked about the progress of the quarterback. That's what made Saturday's press conference with Kevin Stefanski especially insightful. He was asked how Baker Mayfield has handled the first week of training camp and the ongoing installation of a new offense that should help him elevate his game in 2020 and beyond.
"He is doing a nice job," Stefanski said. "All of our players, you have to remind yourself that they are running plays full speed for the first time versus an offense or versus a defense so there are definitely going to be moments where it is not perfect. I think Baker, just like all the other guys, we are learning, and I think he is doing a really nice job. You go down to the red zone period the other day, and we are running those plays for the first time and he is making them work. Then there are other ones that we have to do better at all positions. I think understanding that we are trying to build this thing and get the basics down is really important.
"The other note for the quarterbacks in particular is we make life hard on them in practice, and we are giving them tough looks and we are not giving them outs in certain areas. It is definitely a tough position to play, and we want to make sure that we simulate that as much as we can in practice."
Saturday's practice featured more tough look for Mayfield and the quarterbacks. He certainly thrived in some situations, like when he connected with a wide-open Austin Hooper on a long touchdown pass. There were some more teachable moments, too, that will be addressed during the 22 or so hours between practices.
We covered that and more on a busy Saturday in Berea.
