Die Nacktbar » McCaffrey is always out to prove something and bristl

BEREA Ed Oliver Jersey , Ohio (AP) — Somewhat lost and overlooked amid Baker Mayfield’s public spat with former Browns coach Hue Jackson is that the rookie’s playing at an elite level.This quarterback isn’t all talk.Mayfield had a November to remember, completing 74 percent of his passes (65 of 88) while leading the Browns (4-6-1) to two wins and the edge of serious playoff possibilities.The No. 1 overall pick has thrown nine touchdown passes and just one interception in his past three games while earning a 129.5 rating — second only to New Orleans star Drew Brees.Nothing fake about those numbers.Mayfield, who threw a season-high four TD passes last week — is the first rookie in NFL history to record ratings of 140-plus in consecutive games, and his efforts earned him rookie of the month honors.Rookie of the year may be next.It’s not a coincidence that Mayfield’s recent rise came after Jackson and offensive coordinator Todd Haley were fired. With running backs coach Freddie Kitchens taking over for Haley and calling plays, Cleveland’s offense has played with a faster tempo, has been more versatile and efficient.Mayfield is getting rid of the ball much quicker, spreading it around to his playmakers and making better decisions.It would be easy to surmise Jackson was holding him back, but Mayfield doesn’t think that’s the case.“No,” Mayfield said. “I mean, obviously the easiest answer would be to look on that and say Cody Ford Jersey , ‘Yeah, I’ve played a lot better since then.’ But that’s not it. It’s just been about me doing my job and doing it at a high level. So it’s not about that. I wouldn’t blame that at all.”Still, it’s worth considering where the Browns would be if Mayfield had begun the season as the starter and not Tyrod Taylor’s backup.But that’s irrelevant now as Mayfield has the Browns winning — they snapped a 25-game road losing streak last week at Cincinnati — and playing in meaningful December games, starting with Sunday’s matchup in Houston against the Texans, who have won eight in a row.With his impressive career start, Mayfield has converted numerous doubters who thought he was either too small or too smug to succeed.Texans star Deshaun Watson isn’t surprised by anything Mayfield has done. Watson and Mayfield are friends, their bond beginning as college rivals and strengthened as offseason workout partners.Watson has been around Mayfield long enough to see how players, teams and cities gravitate toward the No. 1 overall draft pick.“I saw that when he was playing at Texas Tech and saw it at Oklahoma,” Watson said. “That is what drew me closer to him, want to be around him and get to know him a little better because I can feed off of that energy that he gives off. Everyone wants to play with him. The guy is a playmaker.“He is playing very well. That is the reason why they are having a lot of success because he is leading that team Devin Singletary Jersey , he is leading that organization and he is going to have a bright future, a bright career, win a lot of games, win championships and do a lot of things for himself and that organization.”Mayfield might be in his first season, but Kitchens said Cleveland’s staff isn’t modifying any aspect of the game plan because of his inexperience.No time for that.“There is not babying him into anything,” Kitchens said. “He is doing a good job. He works hard during the course of the week. He puts time in after hours and before hours. He is doing a good job of staying focused on the task at hand inside of one play, inside of one read, inside of one practice and one game. That is how you continue to progress. It is not overwhelming him or anything like that. It is just continuing his progress on a play-by-play basis.”NOTES: Kitchens joined the chorus of Mayfield supporters who had no problem with the QB objecting to Jackson taking a job with Cincinnati or calling his former coach “fake.” day. Haley said Mayfield had every right to speak his mind. “If he said it, that’s what he feels,” Kitchens said. “And I’m standing behind Baker Mayfield. … Suddenly it’s big news if we don’t want to turn it into a Kumbaya after the game and turn it into fist bumps and hugs. I don’t think Baker disrespected anybody in what he said. He spoke what he felt.” CHARLOTTE Dawson Knox Jersey , N.C. (AP) — When Carolina’s Christian McCaffrey ripped off a 59-yard run against the Seattle Seahawks, there was no tapping his helmet.He wasn’t coming out of the game.The second-year running back told Cam Newton in the huddle before the next play “I’m ready to go,” then took a handoff on the next play and picked up another 15 yards.“Any other average running back would’ve tapped his head and said, ‘I need a blow,'” Newton said.McCaffrey has been the Energizer Bunny of the Panthers‘ offense, playing in 97 percent of the team’s offensive plays through 11 games — the most in the NFL.And he’s showing no signs of letting up.He became the first Carolina player in franchise history to eclipse 100 yards rushing and 100 yards receiving in the same game last Sunday. Despite the loss to the Seahawks, his 237 total yards set a franchise record.Entering Sunday’s game at Tampa Bay, McCaffrey is fourth in the NFL in total yards from scrimmage with 1,365. He has 757 yards rushing and five touchdowns, 608 yards receiving yards on 71 catches and five more TDs.McCaffrey said he never really gets tired — and if he does Brian Burns Jersey , he just ignores it.“I don’t think of it,” McCaffrey said. “When I’m in the game there is so much adrenaline. I never really feel like I’m gasping. You have to push through that.”“He doesn’t look like it is wearing on him,” said Panthers coach Ron Rivera, whose team is looking to snap a three-game losing streak. “He works hard at everything he does and takes care of himself the way you expect a pro to do. Our other young guys can learn from that example.”The 5-foot-11, 205-pound McCaffrey is proving to everyone he’s not too small to be an every-down — and basically every-play — running back.Newton said McCaffrey is always out to prove something and bristles when someone calls him a “small” running back.“When they take you at the eighth pick, you have a lot of people counting on you,” McCaffrey said. “So I knew it was going to be a pivotal (role). But at the same time, you still have to earn everything. And that’s kind of my mindset, how it’s always been.”Said Newton: “C-Mac has defied all odds. The thing that has always put me at comfort with C-Mac is he’s always been a workhorse. He’s always been a playmaker. There’s no denying that. C-Mac was everything (we thought he could be), and a bag of chips.”McCaffrey believes that players like McCaffrey Greg Little Jersey , Le’Veon Bell, Todd Gurley and Alvin Kamara are changing the running back position in the NFL.“Those guys are all-down backs,” Newton said. “And they can take a screen pass, score. They can take a trap, score. They can block in the pass game. They’re everything. And they’re changing the game. My hat goes off to all of those guys knowing that they’re a part of the evolving of the game, just like dual-threat quarterbacks.”