BEREA, Ohio — The distinctive voice begins to rise in the background, softly emanating from Myles Garrett’s eclectic playlist.

“I’ve paid my dues …”

Seated in front of his locker, the Cleveland Browns defensive end quickly glances down at his iPhone to check the song, then returns his focus to the question at hand.

A question he knew was coming. A question about Baker Mayfield and the moment he believed.

“You mean, in person?” Garrett says, smiling. “Or on TV, when I saw him hold his crotch?”

View photos Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield (6) and safety Damarious Randall were all smiles after Cleveland’s 28-16 victory on Sunday against Atlanta. (Getty Images) More

“… Time after time …”

As he continues, Freddie Mercury’s bravura tenor builds toward the defining crescendo of Queen’s “We Are the Champions” — perhaps, a portend of better days ahead, or merely a random coincidence of an Apple-derived algorithm.

“That’s when I knew he was different, man. He had something to him,” Garrett says, detailing the precise moment he knew Mayfield was a special player: The then-Oklahoma quarterback’s infamous crotch grab and “f— you” directive at the Kansas sideline almost a year ago to the day.

“… But I’ve come through …”

“I’m not a smack-talker myself,” Garrett, the Browns’ 2017 first-rounder admitted, “but I believe I can go toe-to-toe with anybody. But he’s willing to let you know.”

Mayfield’s teammates were convinced of his talent long ago. But in the months since the rookie quarterback was drafted No. 1 overall by the organization in late April, they have come to believe in the player, but more so, the man.

He is exactly as advertised: A hot-tempered, aggressive competitor who energizes a meeting room — or an entire stadium — merely with his presence. His bravado is an acquired taste for some. And Mayfield knows it.

“I mean, he’s a d— … when you have to play him,” Garrett matter-of-factly adds with a grin. “Even in practice, sometimes, I wanna chop him in the throat. He talks smack to everybody.”

But there’s more to Mayfield than merely a cocky guy who plays with an edge. Stories abound in the locker room of the type of person he is: The sensitive guy with a big heart. The family-oriented guy who goes out of his way to make teammates feel like kin. The sore loser who despises being seen as second-best. And the fiery force who inspires those around him to play with more grit.

That was evident Sunday against the Atlanta Falcons, when Mayfield went 12-for-12 for 165 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions to give Cleveland a 14-10 first-half lead, en route to a double-digit victory. There were plenty of masterful throws made against the Falcons, but none more impressive than the 28-yard touchdown pass he threw to receiver Rashard Higgins after rolling to his right and launching the ball toward the end zone.

“He got a swag about himself. And the way that he comes to work, we just know he got it,” said Higgins, one of Mayfield’s closest confidants. “We don’t look at him as a rookie. We look at him as a veteran guy that’s going to take the team all the way to victory.”

Mayfield is everything that you expect, and yet not what you might think.

And that’s why he’s here, leading this team, at this point in time.

Chaos again has come to Cleveland, this time in the form of “internal discord” within the coaching staff that became so detrimental, team owner Jimmy Haslam felt he had no choice but to dismiss their fourth head coach in six years and an offensive coordinator only nine months on the job.

No regime is ever safe for long here, an organization that seemingly breeds dysfunction in its hallways. Yet, when it comes to these rebuilding Browns, a current of optimism courses through this community. And, specifically, this locker room.

Amid questions about their four-game losing streak heading into their game against Atlanta and the stunning same-day dismissal of Hue Jackson and assistant Todd Haley, one word was offered as proof of positive things to come.

Story continues