Cleveland Browns
2019 Record: (6-10) 3rd AFC North
2019 Season Recap:
Offense
Points: 20.9 (22nd)
Yards: 340.9 (22nd)
Pass Yards: 222.1 (22nd)
Rush Yards: 118.8 (12th)
Defense
Points: 24.6 (20th)
Yards: 361.6 (22nd)
Pass Yards: 216.9 (7th)
Rush Yards: 144.7 (30th)
An off-season filled with massive hype
filled the early stages as the Cleveland Browns made monumental moves and acquisitions
to help bring this roster along. Having belief in Baker Mayfield to take the
next step in his progression, trading for Odell Beckham Jr had the city a buzz
in hopes that reaching the playoffs would be a formality. Adding Kareem Hunt to
the club amidst his off field indiscretions, the Browns knew they wouldn’t see
him hit the field until his 10-game suspension was served.
Cleveland added more talent to the
defense as well, most notably - Sheldon Richardson, Olivier Vernon, and Greedy
Williams to help lift the prospects. With all this talent added to the team, and
hiring Freddie Kitchens as the clubs new head coach, a dominating squad was the
expectation.
Falling short of those high expectations
is a polite way to say what transpired for the Browns in 2019. Never gaining
that chemistry on offense, while looking disorganized at times defensively, disappointment
filled the Browns fan base which led to yet another season of dismay. Beckham witnessed
his worst season since entering the league and clearly wasn’t on the same page
with his quarterback for majority of the year. The lone bight spot on this
offense came from the fabulous running prowess of Nick Chubb who powered his
was to nearly 1500 rushing yards and eight touchdowns. And while the numbers on
the stat sheet look respectable from Beckham and Jarvis Landry, this team
simply couldn’t put it all together with any form of consistency.
Removing coach Kitchens and general
manager John Dorsey was the outcome, and yet another installation and retooling
is underway. Browns fans have been waiting for a winner for many years and perhaps
with a solid off-season in 2020, we could see a changing of the guard.
2020 Offseason WorkBook:
The Offense
To begin the review at the quarterback
position, Baker Mayfield will undoubtedly again be the unquestioned starter,
but grave improvement is drastically needed. Mayfield did see something of a
regression in 2019 with a higher interception rate (3.9%), followed by a lower
completion percentage (59.4%). Coming out of college, Mayfield’s strength was
his great accuracy levels, but thus far in the NFL, it hasn’t translated.
Truthfully, we couldn’t place a marker on why he struggled so much in 2019, especially
with the sound run attack the Browns employed. Having the ability to exploit
the play action pass should’ve been a welcomed sight on a weekly basis. With that
said, we still believe that in the right system Mayfield will improve but we
need to see much more commitment and consistency to fully jump on board.
As mentioned above when discussing the
running back situation the Browns have, Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt should again
be the focal points of this offense. Granted, Hunt is a restricted free agent
but we can’t envision any situation where they allow him to leave the club. While
we did see the usage of Chubb decline somewhat upon Hunt’s return from suspension,
forming a fantastic one-two punch should be on the docket under new head coach
Kevin Stefanski. Stefanski is coming from the Minnesota Vikings where he used
Dalvin Cook in bunches to help set up the play action pass. The same formula
should be installed in Cleveland with two stellar backs to work with. Baring
Hunt begin signed to an offer sheet this off-season, we love the potential for
the Browns backfield in 2020.
The buzz already from Browns camp is
what to do with star receiver Odell Beckham? Rumors have been swirling to
suggest Cleveland is open to trading Beckham but nothing overly credible has risen.
In our eyes, we find it bizarre to believe that moving on from Beckham would be
the right move this season. With a much better play caller on the sidelines (coach
Stefanski), we will see the fruits of this offense ripen rather early if
Mayfield can correct his uneven play. Having both Beckham and Landry on an
offense is a wonderful problem to have and removing one of them wouldn’t promote
better output in the pass game - unless appropriately replaced.
The only logical thought process to
trade Beckham is to garner more draft picks for a class loaded at the receiver
position. Perhaps this regime would like to remove the heavy contract he holds,
while believing there is an equal talent in the draft which could replace the production
Beckham would leave behind.
Nevertheless, this Browns team could
look much better in 2020 if all stars align under the tutelage of their new
head coach. Growing pains will be felt early as is the case with any new system
and scheme. When it comes to our opinion, Cleveland should transform into a run
first club to help propel Mayfield to get back on track.
The Defense
With all the added weapons on this
defense, it was shocking to witness the amount of big plays that were given up
this past season. With a rebuilt defensive front with the additions of Vernon
and Richardson, Myles Garrett was able to feast. Outside of appropriate depth pieces
on this line, there is no question they could all return to the fold and become
a dominating force. However, rumors also suggest that Cleveland would entertain
moving on from Vernon as well, which would also be a massive move.
Headlining the off-season for the
defensive front, the reinstatement of their super star Myles Garrett from his
suspension has already taken place. Having lost the final six games of last
season due to that helmet smash on Mason Rudolph, the Browns defense clearly wasn’t
the same unit without him. We can see many more pieces added to this line in
hopes to provide a solid rotation of both run stoppers and pass rushers.
When it comes to this line backing core,
we are encouraged with the potential but took a side step last season when they
lost Christian Kirksey for most of the year. Kirksey is a great talent at the
position and will certainly step back into place this season to provide a much
needed presence for run stopping. Joe Schobert showed very well in 2019 as he
again was the leading tackler for the Browns. Along with the emergence of Mack
Wilson, this core should find more success with Kirksey back to full health.
More depth is definitely needed in this room, but we don’t hate the prospects
of a much better season in 2020.
Perhaps the other great strength on this
defense is the secondary. We have never been shy in our support for the great
Denzel Ward as we truly believe he is a shut down corner just scratching the
surface. With the addition of Greedy Williams from the 2019 NFL draft, our eyes
opened wide to believe these two men could be something very special. And while
the Browns did post a top 10 unit in defending the pass (7th
overall), we would like to see some upgrades. Solidifying the safety position
with a younger more talented stud would be what the doctor ordered.
While having Morgan Burnett and
Damarious Randall did appear to be the best solution on the back-end, both
players missed time to injury and Randall is a pending free agent. To clarify,
Burnett isn’t a terrible option to have, we would like to see an upgrade to be
that true quarterback on this defense.
All-in-all, there are many sound pieces to
work with on this defense, and should see much better output under this new
regime. Adding more leadership pieces should be the objective to bring the
locker room together rather than just stacking talent and ego.
Team Free Agents / Team Salary Cap
To jump right into the positives for
this Browns squad, even though a 6-10 campaign was the outcome, holding a
healthy 58 million on the books is a welcomed sight. With that, Cleveland holds
a mere 18 team free agents to contend with and should have no issue resigning
the players they covet while making moves in free agency.
Notable names that should draw interest
from the Browns new front office – Rashard Higgins, Damarious Randall, Joe
Schobert highlight the list. It has been said via the news wire, the Browns won’t
be willing to shell out big money to keep line backer Schobert, but time will
tell. Higgins would be welcomed back with open arms if a reasonable contract
could come to fruition. When it comes to Randall, the jury is out as we truly don’t
see a great appetite to bring him back to the mix.
And while the funds still look plentiful
with that 58 million in free cap space, the way in which the Browns have structured
or inherited these contracts doesn’t leave them hamstrung one bit. If the
reports are true and trading Beckham is in the cards, Cleveland would remove a
whopping 14.2 million on the books while eating a meek 2.75 million in dead
funds. Same would go for the potential trade or release of Vernon from the
roster. Currently holding no dead money on his contract, the Browns would save
an astronomical 15.5 million for a pass rusher who only produced 3.5 sacks last
season.
If the Browns do choose to move on from
both Beckham and Vernon this season, the current cap of 58 million would jump
to a mammoth 84.9 million in free dollars. Though these moves make sense for
the accounting books, we could absolutely see Beckham stay, while Vernon playing
elsewhere in 2020.
The NFL Draft
As we stand today, the Browns currently
hold a healthy eight sections in the 2020 NFL draft with an extra third and
seventh round picks to their name. Adding to the positives, Cleveland has the
10th overall pick in the first round to help add more talent and
ability to this roster.
While the team could move in multiple
directions, offensive line has to be the starting point on day one of the
draft. As we highlighted the inconsistent play from Mayfield in the 2019
season, much of that can be attributed to the terrible pass protection he had in
front of him. Being sacked 40-times this past season, that was a sharp increase
in hitting the turf to the tune of a 2.1% increase in that department. Without
question, revamping the offensive line is a must to make this offense better in
2020.
Adding to that, if the Browns do choose
to move on from Beckham to potentially gain more selections, finding an
adequate replacement will not be difficult. This receiver class is truly loaded
and teams in need will be able to pick their poison. If Beckham could fetch
another first round pick for the Browns to use, seeing an offensive lineman at
10, followed by a receiver anywhere else in from pick eleven down – we would
chalk that up as great success in revamping this roster.
While everything is speculation at this point
of the off-season, one thing should be certain – a better more organized Browns
team should take the field for the new campaign.
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