Michael Vick is still riding STRONG with Baker Mayfield -- telling TMZ Sports he believes the Browns QB can still turn things around ... IF HE THROWS TO ODELL!!
"Baker's my dude," Vick says ... "Just keep pluggin'. All the outside noise, you're gonna get that. You gotta be mentally tough at the quarterback position."
Of course, Mayfield's come under fire lately because ... to put it simply ... the Browns are back to being the Browns, with a lackluster 2-6 record.
And, Baker's been getting crushed in the media for his stat line -- 7 TDs and 12 INTs -- having only thrown to Odell during Red Zone opportunities 3 TIMES this year!
"At the end of the day, he gotta throw the ball to Odell Beckham," Vick says.
FYI, Beckham was so frustrated with the situation in CLE, he reportedly said after the Broncos game, "I can’t get the ball to save my life."
"I can’t get the ball to save my life” - Odell Beckham@obj had Chris Harris beat for a touchdown but Baker didn't even look for him, he threw to double coverage instead on 4th down at the end of the game.pic.twitter.com/Jpj86cWgN4
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) November 4, 2019
But, it's clear in our video, Vick isn't turning on the QB -- he still thinks Baker is the key to the future in Cleveland.
"He's got a long career ahead of him. Gotta start winning more than losing."
We also spoke with Vick about all of the Lamar Jackson comparisons ... and whether he thinks LJ has a chance to be a better QB than he was back in the day.