Baker Mayfield has been the biggest topic in the NFL in recent weeks. Now it is clear: The quarterback will play for the Carolina Panthers next year. Now the 27-year-old has spoken out for the first time following the trade.

Munich/Charlotte – He looked tense but also liberated in his first press conference as a Carolina Panthers player.

Baker Mayfield answered journalists’ questions for the first time since his trade on Tuesday. He received them via video feed from his kitchen.

Mayfield: No bad blood with Cleveland

“Thank you for your welcome, I appreciate it,” Mayfield began his Q&A session.

Whether there would be any bad blood with his ex-team Cleveland Browns was the very first question. “No, I’m just happy that I can make this new start now,” the quarterback was diplomatic. He no longer wants to look back, but forward. “If I focus on the past, I’m not doing my job right as a Panther,” he said. “I’m thankful for my time there. Shocked – I would say that’s about the only way to describe it. You have to roll with the punches and move forward. “

With the Browns, there’s no animosity or anything like that, Mayfield stressed, “I’m glad I got to spend the first four years of my career there. Even with all the tasks and hurdles I had to face there. But now I’m a Panther and I want to tackle this new task. “

Open quarterback duel with Darnold

Automatic starter, however, Mayfield is not, at least general manager Scott Fitterer said. “This is an open competition here,” the GM said just minutes before Mayfield’s presser. “The reason we brought him in was to spice up the competition and make us better as a whole. “

“That competition will also make Sam Darnold better,” he continued. Darnold, who the Panthers also got from the New York Jets via trade last season, will be Mayfield’s first challenger.

“It’s a very healthy situation we’re in,” Fitterer says. The signal caller himself is also looking forward to the competition. “Nobody has the mentality of being a backup. I’m just working on being the best quarterback I can be.”

Mayfield is already looking forward to the Week One clash with the Cleveland Browns. “Sure it’s going to be special, but it always is when you put the pads on for the first time for a new team. “

The 27-year-old is already familiar with the situation of competing against a former team. “It was the same thing in college after I transferred from Texas Tech to Oklahoma.”

But it remains to be seen whether he will even be the starter who gets to play against his former team. It just remains to be seen if he wins the touted contest.