As
the NFL offseason is in full swing, it’s a perfect opportunity to evaluate
where each team was in 2017, and where they plan to go in the New Year. Let’s
begin the review of the Cleveland Browns.
2017 Season Recap:
Paper
bags covering faces and heads of their fans has been a normal look for this
franchise that once enjoyed glory, now reduced to a laughing stock based on
inept decision making. Investigating as far back as humanly possible, you can
only find a handful of seasons in the last two decades that showed the Browns
as a success rather than a failure. Posting only three winning seasons since
1990, the Browns fan base can be pegged as the most loyal and patient as we’ve
ever come across in our time covering the NFL. In years 1994, 2002, and 2007,
the Browns had winning records with enjoying playoffs twice going only as far
as the divisional round in 1994. It’s been a long haul of losing for a fan base
that still remains loyal to the club, I think it’s time to right the wrongs and
provide this city with what they deserve, a winner!
Unfortunately
as we broke down the Browns 2017 season, there wasn’t a whole lot to get overly
excited about. Coming off the 2016 season that saw the Browns only win one game,
you’d think there was only one way to go from there – UP! How wrong we were.
The 2017 edition of the Cleveland Browns fell to the lowest of levels, matching
the 2008 Detroit Lions as the only teams in NFL history to go 0-16 in a season.
On paper, the Browns aren’t a terribly devastating unit that do possess talent
in certain levels of this roster. Even as the season wore on, Cleveland was
competitive in many contests but usually fell apart as the third quarter of
games entered the half way point. Week one against the Steelers was a great
opportunity as their comeback fell short as they dropped the contest by a mere
three points. Yet again in week three, the Browns fell behind early and came up
just short of a comeback dropping another game, this time to the Colts losing
by three. Week 5 and week 7, the Browns had the Vegas odds makers believing
there was a possibility the Browns could pull out their first wins of the
season. Facing the Jets at home week five they again fell short – again losing
by three points. As the losses began to pile up, week 7 they surely again found
a way to drop the contest by that same margin – three points. Though the Browns
had some decent moments, none were worse than week 17 playing against the
Steelers backup depth unit. The Steelers rested most of their players for the
post season, Cleveland took it all the way down to the wire, missing on a 4th
down conversion as Corey Coleman watched the ball go right thorough his hands
sealing 0-16 for 2017.
Statistically
Duke Johnson was the leading receiver for the Browns this past season and holds
great value as a matchup player with a great catching skillset which is
invaluable coming out of the backfield. The return of Josh Gordon brought excitement
to the offense as he again flashed high end potential in the limited action he
saw. Rookie David Njoku earned fantastically valuable experience in playing
time as his skillset began extremely raw as he entered the 2017 season. Isaiah
Crowell put his best efforts forward but fell short of a 1000 yard season by
147 yards, which would’ve been very impressive on a club with virtually no
offense to speak of. Defensively, the Browns do have youthful talent that if
molded correctly while adding more skill to the picture, this could very well
be a top 10 unit in the near future. Building around star potential rookies,
Miles Garrett and Jabrill Peppers, and adding former Patriot standout line
backer Jamie Collins to the mix, those are fantastic pieces to construct
around. Line backer Christian Kirksey is another player that is only improving
with added playing time. With these positives highlighted, there is truly
significant tinkering that must be done on both sides of the ball to make this
team competitive in the future.
2018 Offseason Workbook:
Offseason Review:
As
the Browns players and coaches walked off the field with their heads hanging
low, the questions ultimately formed as to what ownership would do with current
head coach Hue Jackson and his horrible 1-31 overall winning record in his
first two seasons. Owner Jim Haslam chose to keep the talented offensive mind
to remain the bench boss for at least one more season, while he shook up the
upper management changing the outlook. Having seen enough, Haslam fired EVP of
football operations - Sashi Brown and hired John Dorsey formally of the Kansas
City Chiefs taking over the position of general manager, the same post he held
in Kansas City. Dorsey does have a proven track record of finding and drafting
talent which was his sole position back with the Green Bay Packers. With all
the turmoil and controversy surrounding the Browns owner since he took over the
Browns, this looks to be the second most intelligent move to date behind the
hiring of Hue Jackson.
As
Dorsey was busy changing his address, Hue Jackson began the inevitable task of
retooling his coaching staff. Making a monster splash right off the bat,
Jackson hired long time Steelers offensive coordinator Todd Haley to try and
recreate his success from Pittsburgh into a Cleveland team in desperate need of
some offensive production. Continuing down the path to clean house on the
offensive coaching group, Jackson hired former Bengal Ken Zampese as their
quarterbacks coach. Replacing both the running back and wide receiver coaches,
Jackson brought in familiar faces in Freddie Kitchens and Adam Henry to man the
positions respectively. While the other positions on the offensive and
defensive staffing groups remain virtually unchanged, it’s very plausible Hue
Jackson finally has a group around him that can work together with a similar
mindset to finally get the organization right.
Reviewing
the Browns offensively, the same questions arise as it’s the most important
question, ‘what is the long-term answer at quarterback’? Its clear DeShone
Kizer isn’t the answer in Cleveland, but all can’t be placed on his shoulders
as the Browns gave him no support to succeed. The lack of a solid run game and
viable receiving targets lead to his demise. Cleveland’s offensive line isn’t arteriosus
but could definitely use an upgrade as left tackle and highest paid player on
the Browns could be left off the roster next season. When reviewing the
statistics, the Cleveland offense wasn’t as bad as their record showed expect
for the most important area, points scored. The Browns were the worst team in
the NFL scoring an underwhelming 14.6 points per game which tells most of the
story. The lack of playmakers on this offense teamed with inability to capitalize
in red zone opportunities, made them an easy beat come Sunday. Ranking low in
other statistical categories showed they could at least move the ball with some
regularity. Ranking 24th in total yards (308.9 YPG), 22nd
in the pass game (201.8 YPG), and 18th in the run (107.1 YPG), proves
to us this shouldn’t have been an 0-16 squad if not for the points scored. Improvements
have to be made and believe you me, they are coming. General manager John
Dorsey will ultimately start from scratch retooling this offense to make it a much-improved
unit in 2018. After all, there is literally no where to go but up in this case.
Defensively,
as we mentioned above, the Browns have viable pieces that the brass can build
upon to make them better than what they were in 2017. With a healthy Miles
Garrett leading the way, adding top end performers will be what the Browns are
looking for. Added pass rush presence will be invaluable to a secondary that
also requires a face lift. The trade of defensive back Joe Haden to the
Steelers left a gapping hole that they couldn’t overcome. It was very clear in
reviewing the Browns tape, as they couldn’t score on offense, they couldn’t strop
anyone from scoring on defense. Ranking 31st in the league in points
against (25.6 PPG), it was a recipe for disaster in every contest. With that
said, ADF has some belief in the top pieces the Browns do employ on that side
of the ball. We can easily defend this argument as Cleveland was ranked 14th
in total yards against (328.1 YPG), 19th against the pass without
Joe Haden (230.2 YPG), and a terrific ranking of 7th against the run
game stopping teams with regularity (97.9 YPG). Losing Jamie Collins to injured
reserve in week 10 proved how important he is to this Browns defense. The
Browns will definitely shore up the defensive line depth while trying to overhaul
the secondary (with exception of Peppers). This defense when healthy can be an
very much improved unit in 2018.
Rostered Free Agents:
With
any 0-16 squad, reviewing their roster and how its built its no surprise they
have an abundance of salary cap at their disposal. Currently the Browns have
just over 110 million dollars under the cap and literally have no one to resign.
Having only four players on the watch list all of whom plan to hit the open
market, including last years starting running back Isaiah Crowell. The Browns
roster is filled with youthful players from past draft classes that should continue
to be on this roster.
Reviewing
the potential cap casualties, two players stick out as prime candidates. Though
ADF believes Joe Thomas should remain a Brown in 2018, he has an attractive
11.25 million in cut savings. Another player that didn’t preform to the salary he’s
given is defensive back Jamar Taylor. If cut loose the Browns could save
another 3.7 million on the cap. The Browns do employ a slue of depth players
that could also be on the chopping block. Everyone should be under review as
0-16 keeps no one immune from the street.
NFL Draft:
The
exciting part of the season for Browns fans year after year is the NFL Draft.
Yet again, Cleveland has amassed a multitude of selections holding a whopping
12 picks in the 2018 Draft. Holding six selections in the top 65 including two
first round picks (1st & 4th overall), two second
round picks (33rd & 35th overall), the Browns should
be able to control the board and obtain fantastic talent from this draft class.
The main question remains – what direction do the Browns choose to go with the
first overall pick? Do they finally receive the top quarterback in the class
(arguably Josh Rosen), or do they take a chance and pick the top running back
and possibly the most talented player in the draft in Saquon Barkley? The
challenge before them is how can they obtain their top quarterback selection
and still find a way to draft Barkley? With both the Giants and the Colts in desperate
need of a franchise runner, the first thought would make sense for Saquon to be
the top pick in the draft. If the Browns intend to move in that direction, the
Giants could easily steal the replacement for Eli Manning as the Browns watch
yet another quarterback fall from their lap.
The
set up for how Cleveland plans to attack this draft will be very interesting,
as they could offer up some of their draft capital without taking a hit and receiving
their top-rated players from their draft board. General manager John Dorsey
should be licking his chops with the fantastic opportunity he has in front of
him. As we witness this play out, this draft will most certainly define Dorsey
and his tenure. If somehow the Browns fumble this unbelievable opportunity we
will all just shake our heads to what could’ve been. ADF has confidence that
finally Cleveland will right the ship and sail to better pastures.
Overall for 2018:
With
all the reviewing of rostered players and the potential of drafting top tear
talent, we didn’t even touch base with the possibility of the Browns blowing
all teams out of the water and signing free agent Kirk Cousins. While Kirk has
made it known, money isn’t the most import item on his agenda as he would entertain
going to a winning system with the potential for sustainable success. If
somehow the Browns convince Cousins to become their franchise quarterback,
Cleveland would still have ample resources within their cap and the draft to be
more versatile obtaining talent without having to worry about the most
important position. Cleveland Browns fans should be excited for what the future
has to come with the potential of Cousins at quarterback, Gordon and Coleman at
receiver, Barkley at running back and rounding out the roster with talented
players from the draft and free agency. With all this speculation said, the
Browns need to execute this offseason to perfection and not waiver on their choices.
The future could look very bright in Cleveland – something the fans are most
deserving of.
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