Cleveland Browns
Height: 6-0 Weight: 217 Age: 28
Born: 8/3/1989 Hampton , VA
College: Virginia Tech
Experience: 8th season
High School: Hampton HS [VA]
The Perception:
Tyrod Taylor
has struggled to convince the masses that he is more than just your average NFL
quarterback with athletic ability and running upside. As we all know, Taylor
received his chance to start in this league with the Buffalo Bills under the
Rex Ryan regime back in 2015. Taylor proved he was an exciting player that displayed
great skill with the deep pass with immense accuracy, while electrifying in
game situations with his legs taking off whenever the opportunity presented
itself. As opposing teams began to stockpile game film on the first time
starter, it was apparent Tyrod would continue to have his struggles in his 2016
& 2017 seasons. Over three seasons in Buffalo, Taylor was unable to show
progression that would warrant the new Bills coaching staff to stay the course
keeping him as the starter for the Bills.
Early in the
2018 offseason, the Bills shipped Tyrod to the Cleveland Browns in exchange for
draft pick compensation giving the initial perception that Taylor would at
least begin the year as the Browns starting quarterback. When the deal occurred
sending Taylor to Cleveland, subsequent moves trading for Jarvis Landry from
the Miami Dolphins to help rebuild the foundation for this Browns club, we at
ADF began to look at the potential of what the Browns could become. With former
Pittsburgh Steelers offensive coordinator Todd Haley also making a transition
bringing with him a skilled offensive system to a squad that bolsters
playmakers like Landry, Gordon, Hyde, Johnson, and Njoku; it only increased our
gleam for Tyrod Taylor and the potential for this fantasy football season.
As we enter organized
team activity, mini-camps, and eventually training camp, Tyrod should find his
way to beating out young rookie Baker Mayfield, unless Mayfield shows something
extremely special this preseason. If Tyrod in fact does playout the season as
the Browns starter, the potential is there to see improved numbers perhaps the
likes of new career highs in both passing and rushing. From day one Cleveland
should find their way to being in the top five in rushing much like the Bills
were these past three seasons with Taylor under center. Browns fans have a lot
to be excited about as the season moves closer.
The Reality:
Let me be
very clear and set the stage appropriately for how we view Tyrod Taylor. First,
Taylor does possess a unique athletic skillset that allows him to make plays with
his legs once trouble comes his way. There might be no one better than Taylor
when he breaks the pocket; turns up field eluding would be tacklers while
extending drives. Adding to the running aspect of his game, Taylor does have a
great arm which allows him to launch the ball down the field with ease and precision,
finding his receivers with very good consistency. Looking back at the 2015
season, the Buffalo Bills employed a receiving core that was able to help
Taylor excel as a first time starter. With Sammy Watkins, Robert Woods, Chris
Hogan, and Percy Harvin rounding out the core of pass catchers, the Bills were one
of the best teams in the NFL in both deep pass attempts, and deep pass
completions to go alone with being the best team on the ground leading in
rushing yards. You see now where we’re going with this??
As the
Browns have retooled the entire offense, Taylor now has a unit which could
actually be seen as better than the 2015 Buffalo Bills. Jarvis Landry is a
machine that will catch literally anything thrown his way, while Josh Gordon
looks to replant himself as one of the most dominating receivers in the game.
Having a rushing attack to aid Taylor in Carlos Hyde and Nick Chubb, while having
viable check down options in Duke Johnson, David Njoku, there should be no
excuses if Taylor falters making way for Baker Mayfield to take over the reins
and begin his NFL career.
It appears
we have only sung the praises of what the Browns and Tyrod could achieve this
season, but we feel inclined to share the number of inadequacies Taylor
possesses. It’s very clear Tyrod struggles with any pass over the middle, especially
those which travel more than ten yards. We believe this is a combination of
both terrible coaching insisting he protect the ball at all costs, and his inability
to adequately read line backers in zone coverages over the middle with a lack
of touch on the ball. As the years went on in Buffalo, it was evident the
coaching staff had no faith in Tyrod other than sideline routes and deep shots
down the field, while encouraging him to run whenever the opportunity presented
itself. While we also question if Taylor will find some magical correction in
Cleveland which will enhance his skill in finding his targets in places he’d
never go before, we believe his extremely talented wide receivers will give
that perception while bailing Tyrod out on poor throws.
The Outlook:
It doesn’t take great
intelligence to understand what is required to expel the most from Tyrod, the
reality of the situation in Cleveland, and how its set up for the 2018 season -
Taylor could have a banner year. In 2015, Tyrod Taylor saw his best season scoring
271.05 fantasy points seeing
an average per week score of nearly 17
fantasy points, very serviceable for any starting quarterback. While his 2016
season saw a very similar output of 270.92
fantasy points, 2017 is the year everything fell off a cliff which saw Taylor
account for 222.66 fantasy
points, providing the perception that Taylor was inept and wouldn’t do anything
positive with his new digs in Cleveland.
As fantasy
drafts begin to ramp up, we’ve seen Tyrod literally carry no ADP (Average Draft
Position) in mock drafts, placing him outside the draft and into the waiver
pool. Though we recognize at this stage in the offseason his placement is due
in part to the uncertainty of who will in fact win the starting job for the
Browns, but this is very shocking to say the least. ADF has no issue endorsing
a draft selection for Tyrod in the later rounds as he should make his way back
to fantasy relevance in Cleveland. If Tyrod Taylor wins the job and holds onto
it for the duration of the season, we could easily see 270 fantasy points as the benchmark, with the potential to
surpass the 300 point mark while
carrying a ceiling of 320 fantasy
points, it’s definitely not out of the question. The potential is here for
Taylor to find himself back on the fantasy football map, don’t go to sleep on
him just yet.
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