By: Jake Rajala

The Cincinnati Bengals defied all the odds last season and reached their first Super Bowl in 33 years (which they only narrowly lost to the LA Rams 23-20). They topped the AFC with a 27-24 OT win over the Kansas City Chiefs in Kansas City and wrapped up the AFC North Division Title with a 10-7 record. Ja’Marr Chase amassed 175 points, Joe Burrow 153 points, Joe Mixon 150 points, and Tee Higgins 125 points. The next best receiver was tight end C.J. Uzomah with 93 points. It was an outstanding year, but I don’t think it will be repeated. Here’s why:

1: Strength of Schedule.

The Bengals played last season with the fourth-placed schedule in the AFC North. They only played five Playoff teams in their 17 games- the Packers, the Raiders, the Chargers, the Niners, and the Chiefs and they lost three of these games.

In 2022, they have the third most demanding schedule. Aside from the Ravens and Browns in the AFC North, both of whom were injury-ravaged all last season, and the Steelers (who won’t be a pushover despite moving on from Roethlisberger), the Bengals have to play the Cowboys, Saints, Titans, Chiefs, Buccaneers, and the Bills, with honorable mention to the Dolphins (added Tyreek Hill),  and Patriots. If they somehow manage to still make it to the Playoffs we can probably count the Chargers to that list who added Khalil Mack. Last season they won three regular season games by 3 points or less which ultimately made the difference between winning the AFC North and enabling them to go on their postseason run. I don’t think they will be so fortunate this coming season. 

2. Depth of Roster.

As already mentioned the Bengals relied on a small handful of players for most of their points. Burrow and Chase is a deadly combination, but if Chase was to go down injured, what depth do the Bengals have at wide receiver after Higgins and Boyd? Have you ever heard of Mike Thomas, Stanley Morgan, Trent Taylor? The Bengals have these listed as their second wide receivers. Oh, and tight end C.J. Uzomah has left the Bengals.

For a Super Bowl-losing team the Bengals don’t have much depth, and to be fair, they didn’t last season either, but last season they were remarkably injury-free. Of the 32 NFL teams, the Bengals had the 9th healthiest roster and the fourth healthiest in the AFC. They’re unlikely to be as fortunate this coming season.

3. Evan McPherson.

Let’s not pretend the Bengals kicker didn’t significantly impact the Bengals win total last season. Statistics don’t lie:

• McPherson had 5 game winning walk-off field goals 
• He Kicked 12/12 in the postseason which is the NFL record
• He holds the NFL record of 4 field goals kicked in multiple games in a single postseason
• He was 12/14 field goals of 50+ yards which is another NFL record
• He was 22/22 on field goals on the road last season
• He amassed 130 points from field goals last season so contributed the fourth most points on the team

No wonder the Bengals faithful gave him a huge reception when he came on in their preseason friendly loss to the Cardinals, where he didn’t miss a kick, including a 58-yard bomb. As good as he is, 5 walk-off wins are unlikely this upcoming season.

My prediction is the AFC North is likely to be won by the Baltimore Ravens unless Jacoby Brissett performs a lot better than expected for the Cleveland Browns. If the Browns are still in contention by game 12, and the return of Deshaun Watson, there might yet be a late twist in the AFC North Division race.

The post Will the Bengals repeat their success in 2022? appeared first on Pro Football Mania.

By: Ivan Mulinder

The Cleveland Browns beat the Jacksonville Jaguars 24 – 13 on Friday, August 12th and there were a number of important takeaways from the game, some good, and some bad. Let’s have a closer look at some of the key analyses.

QB Deshaun Watson 

Deshaun Watson made his Browns debut and looked rusty. This is no great surprise when you consider that his last competitive game was against the Tennessee Titans in Week 17 2020/21 where he threw for 365 yards and 3 touchdowns in a 41-38 loss. Watson threw the ball 5 times with 1 completion for 7 yards, but Anthony Schwartz dropped three of these passes. The Browns have been clear that Jacoby Brissett is getting most of the first team reps in practice so it’s unsurprising that we saw him for such a short period in the game. The good news is his pocket presence looked good and he looked dangerous when scrambling – which is something the Browns lacked with Baker Mayfield. Once he’s back up to game speed Watson is going to be an excellent weapon in the Browns Offense.

C Nick Harris

Unfortunately, Centre Nick Harris suffered an ACL injury to his right knee. Nick had put on weight but kept his mobility and the Browns were hopeful he was going to have a good season. The way he was driven back wasn’t a good omen and now he’s going to have surgery on his knee and will be out for the season. Fortunately, the Browns brought in Ethan Pocic in Free Agency and his backup is Dawson Deaton. Deaton played Guard for Texas Tech and was the Browns 7th Round pick in the 2022 Draft going at number 246. This means he isn’t a starting caliber Centre.  Will the Browns move to bring back JC Tretter? I doubt it as they cut him from their roster, but Billy Price is still available in Free Agency so I wouldn’t be surprised if a move was made for him. 

WR Anthony Schwartz

I’ve mentioned already that Anthony Schwartz had a poor game. He didn’t register any yardage on Friday with multiple drops. Trying to look on the positive side, at least he got into positions to make catches which is more than he achieved in his rookie year in 2021. The Browns Wide Receiver Room remains a concern for me. Amari Cooper, Donovan Peoples-Jones, and David Bell didn’t play and have had a good Training Camp so far, but there is little to excite outside of those three. Michael Woods II was having a good Camp but pulled his hamstring and Javon Wims is now in his 4th season, so if he was going to have an impact you would think he’d have made it by now. Personally, I’d really like to see the Browns move for Will Fuller who is still available in Free Agency. 

CB Martin Emerson Jr

The Browns Cornerback Room has to be one of the deepest, if not the deepest, in the NFL- Denzel Ward, Greg Newsome II, Greedy Williams, AJ Green, and now Martin Emerson.  Emerson looked in total control all night and capped off a superb performance with a Pick 6 going 74 yards at the end of the first half to put the Browns in the lead. The only battle is going to be for the CB6 slot, but Herb Miller also looked good with a fine interception, and he is a 2-year veteran so he understands the game more and is learning from outstanding players. 

RB Jerome Ford 

The Browns love their Running Backs and Jerome Ford was motoring against the Jaguars. He had 10 carries for 57 yards, 5.7 yards per carry, and a rushing touchdown. In addition, he had 4 receptions for 45 yards, with an average of 11.2 yards per reception, and a receiving touchdown. Ford was selected by the Browns in Round 5 of the 2022 Draft with pick 156 and with this performance, and the Browns need at Wide Receiver, it could be that Kareem Hunt is traded to a team that is short of an RB1. With Nick Chubb, D’Ernest Johnson, Demetric Felton, and now Jerome Ford the Browns are loaded at Running Back, with an honorable mention to John Kelly. 

QB Battle

So, the Browns move on to a home game next week against the Philadelphia Eagles where we should begin to see more of their starters playing. However, don’t expect to see Jacoby Brissett on the pitch for long as the QB battle between Joshua Dobbs and Josh Rosen is a fascinating one from the evidence of Friday’s game. Dobbs completed 10 of 13 attempts for 108 yards and a touchdown whereas Rosen went 6 of 7 for 56 yards. It would appear that the Browns have much better depth at QB this season than last year where Case Keenum wasn’t even given the opportunity to start despite Baker’s horrendous injuries. As for all teams let’s hope there are no more serious injuries.

The post Takeaways from the Browns 24-13 victory over the Jaguars appeared first on Pro Football Mania.

By: Jake Rajala

In the morning of August 1st, Sue Robinson finally made her judgment regarding the case of Deshaun Watson. The NFL wanted an indefinite suspension for Watson with at least a 1-year ban. The NFLPA, representing Watson, argued for no ban, citing a lack of past punishments for owners Robert Kraft and Dan Snyder. At the worst, they argued for a minimal ban given the equal lack of severe punishments for similar past accusations against players such as Ben Roethlisberger and Ezekiel Elliott. Her verdict was a 6 game ban, with no fine and a requirement that Watson only uses Club masseurs.

The outcry was immediate from outraged fans across the NFL and beyond who were expecting a much harsher punishment than this. The reality is, as Sue Robinson said herself, she is imposing the harshest punishment ever given to a non-violent offender involving sexual conduct, and that his conduct was more egregious than any before viewed by the NFL. This despite the fact that she thinks Watson violated NFL Policy through:

• Sexual Assault
• Being a genuine danger to the safety and well-being of another
• Undermining and putting at risk the integrity of the NFL

Furthermore, she stated his categorical denials were not justified when “weighed against the credible testimony of the investigators.” She states that “it is more probable than not” that he made inappropriate sexual contact with 4 of the woman the NFL put forward in their case against Watson.

So it sounds like Watson should have received more severe punishment, but he didn’t for one very important reason. The NFL hasn’t been taking seriously accusations and potentially criminal acts for decades. They haven’t punished past misdemeanors/crimes anywhere near as harshly as they should have done. They have put money over morals for so long Sue Robinson was left with no choice, but to impose the “harshest punishment ever given to a non-violent offender.”

The very fact that this was the harshest punishment ever handed out to a non-violent offender says all you need to know about how seriously the NFL has taken accusations of sexual assault. Ben Roethlisberger, soon to be Hall of Fame QB for the Pittsburgh Steelers, was accused of rape by 2 alleged victims back in 2008-10. The first alleged victim agreed to a payoff. The NFL imposed no ban and no fine. The second alleged victim also agreed to an out-of-court settlement. The NFL imposed a 6 game ban which they then reduced to 4 games for good behavior. The NFL protects its owners even more tightly. Robert Kraft, the owner of the New England Patriots, was actually caught on camera soliciting prostitution from trafficked illegal immigrants. What was his punishment? Nothing. Dan Synder, the owner of the Washington Commanders, has been consistently accused of sexual assault for over a decade. What has been his punishment? Nothing.

Sue Robinson’s hands have been tied by NFL precedent. She even cited the case of Ray Rice who was charged with aggravated assault. She said, “While it may be entirely appropriate to more severely discipline players for non-violent sexual conduct, I do not believe it is appropriate to do so without notice of the extraordinary change this position portends for the NFL and its players.” She is saying that not only have the NFL set their own precedents, but they can’t arbitrarily increase the suspension due to the volume of the public outcry. She is saying the NFL can’t identify misconduct after that conduct has taken place. They need to tell the NFLPA and its players (and the owners) what isn’t acceptable and what the punishment will be first.

The NFL needs to learn from decades of putting money before women. They have themselves to blame and I hope they listen carefully to what Sue Robinson has said and put procedures in place that properly punish future accusations/crimes. As a Browns fan, I have never condoned Deshaun Watson’s actions and behavior and I never will. I will never buy his jersey, but I refuse to let one man ruin my love for the Cleveland Browns. This is an issue that is much bigger than team loyalty, it’s about the NFL and their failure to act appropriately over not just sexual assault, but a myriad of other crimes including alleged murder.

The post In-depth look at the Deshaun Watson ruling appeared first on Pro Football Mania.

By: Jake Rajala

It’s been another eventful week for the Browns, in what has already been a very eventful off-season. I’ve written about Sue Robinson’s judgment in a previous article, where she gave the harshest punishment she could to Deshaun Watson, given how the NFL has treated past misdemeanors by both players and owners. The NFL didn’t like her judgment and appealed the decision as they wanted an indefinite ban and a substantial fine. 

Roger Goodell has appointed New Jersey attorney general Peter C Harvey to hear the appeal, who has League connections and expertise in domestic violence and sexual assault. Harvey has advised the NFL before on workplace policies and he’s been a member of the League’s Diversity Advisory Committee. In 2017 he was on the panel that reviewed Ezekiel Elliott’s domestic violence case and Elliott received a 6-game suspension. Let’s not pretend this is an independent review. Goodell is going to get exactly what he wants so now this whole saga will drag on throughout the season as the NFLPA will take it all the way to the High Court. It’s actually more likely that Watson will start the season, but the Browns won’t know who their starting QB will be on a weekly basis. This undoubtedly negatively impacts the Browns whereas a 6 game ban appeared to be worth the gamble they made when they signed Watson to a 5 year $230m contract and gave up 3 first-round picks for him. 

Sue Robinson was very detailed in her judgment and for Roger Goodell to ride roughshod over her decision shows the pressure he’s under from the public. Goodell has always put money before women so he hasn’t made this move because he cares for women. If he had cared he would have suspended Watson immediately after women started accusing Watson of sexual assault and certainly wouldn’t have allowed Franchises to trade for him. 

In Week 2 Training Camp news a number of players have stood out, two WR being Michael Woods II and Jakeem Grant. The WR Room has been hit by injuries, so the fact that both these players have impressed is good news given the Browns need competition behind Amari Cooper and Donovan Peoples-Jones. CB AJ Green has been outstanding on second-team drills which is exciting news as the Browns are already very strong in this position with Denzel Ward, Gregg Newsome II, and Greedy Williams. TE Harrison Bryant continues to progress and improve and alongside David Njoku, this means they’re looking strong in this area. Rookie Kicker, Cade York has been regularly kicking from over 50+ yards, and given the impact, McPherson made in Cincinnati last season this bodes really well for the Browns who finished on 8 wins in 2021 but had 2 losses of less than 3 points. 

Other Week 2 Training Camp news includes:

• CB Martin Emerson Jr has been impressive
• Browns signed DE Chris Odem
• Browns placed DE Stephen Weatherly on IR who will need knee surgery
• Browns activated WR David Bell and Javon Wims
• Browns activated LB Anthony Walker Jr

Chris Odem is an interesting signing. He’s 6.4 and 255lbs which is slightly lighter than the Browns like their DE to be. He entered the league in 2017 and played for the Falcons, Packers, and Commanders before playing for Calgary in the CFL  and then Houston in the USFL. He was named defensive Player of the Year in the USFL with 12.5 sacks. Let’s not pretend he’s anything other than someone the Browns are looking at so don’t get too excited- in his NFL career he only recorded 2 sacks.

On August 12th the Browns start their pre-season schedule when they travel to Jacksonville. August is also the month of roster cuts:

• August 16th: 90 to 85 players
• August 23rd: 85 to 80 players
• August 30th: 80 to 53 players

The post Browns Training Camp Week 2 appeared first on Pro Football Mania.

By: Ivan Mulinder

Over the last week, the NFL’s 3-day hearing regarding Deshaun Watson has concluded, and now all we can do is wait for Judge Sue Robinson’s verdict. It is known that the NFL was arguing for an indefinite suspension with a view that Watson’s camp would have to accept a longer punishment. It’s also known that Watson’s camp was having none of that, arguing that no punishment would be fair, given that there was no violence, no threats, no coercion, and no force used in the acts committed. Indeed NFL owners Dan Snyder and Robert Kraft received no harsh discipline for solicitation. Although, similar crimes by Ben Roethlisberger and Ezekiel Elliot both led to 6 game bans, with Elliot charged with domestic violence. Given this precedent, it seems almost inevitable that the Browns will be without Watson for 6-8 games, but will have him at QB for at least half the season.

What does this mean for the Cleveland Browns outlook for the 2022 season? I honestly believe Jacoby Brissett can shine if Watson only receives a 6 game ban. With that said, I’m going to predict the Browns 2022 record.

• Game 1 Browns @ Panthers. I don’t see the Panthers putting up too many points on the Browns defense given their poor QB room. Their WR room has potential with DJ Moore, Robby Anderson, Terrace Marshall, Rashard Higgins, and Christian McCaffrey, but not with Darnold at QB. The Panthers also lost Haason Reddick and haven’t replaced him at edge so Browns win 24-15.

• Game 2 Jets @ Browns. The Jets Defense is much improved, but they don’t do well against the run so I’m expecting Chubb and Hunt to pick up some big yardage. Zach Wilson will improve and the Jets will pick up more than four wins, but not against the Browns. Browns win 28-17.

• Game 3 Steelers @ Browns. The Steelers offensive line is one of the worst in the League and they protect Mitch Trubisky who is nowhere near as good as even an aged Ben Roethlisberger. The Browns will run through the Steelers and Garrett and Clowney will have lots of pressures. Watt and Heyward will be their usual threat, but the Browns win 26-13.

• Game 4 Browns @ Falcons. The Falcons have a really strong CB duo in AJ Terrell and Casey Heyward Jr, but a poor defensive line. This is another good game for Chubb and Hunt and the Falcons have lost Julio Jones, Calvin Ridley, and Russell Gage over the last few seasons with their main receiving threats now Kyle Pitts and Drake London. Browns win 31-13.

• Game 5 Chargers @ Browns. The Browns and Brissett face their first big challenge when the Bolts come to town bringing with them Khalil Mack and Joey Bosa. Justin Herbert can make any play and sits behind a quality offensive line with Rashawn Slater, Matt Feiler, and Corey Linsley. The Chargers have even brought in Sebastien Joseph Day to stop the run. The Browns Defense really needs to step up for this game, but I don’t see that Brissett is up to the task: Browns lose 30-17.

• Game 6 Patriots @ Browns. This is an interesting match-up with the Patriots having a strong safety group, but a weak cornerback room with Jalen Mills and Terrance Mitchell. The Browns Offense is just too strong for the Patriots, the Browns win 27-17.

It’s now possible that Deshaun Watson returns with the Browns on a 5-1 record and in time for the toughest part of their schedule.

• Game 7 Browns @ Ravens. The Ravens are a really tough team to predict for me. They have an excellent Secondary, but a really weak receiving corp. They’re clearly relying on a strong run game so I’m expecting this to be a very close game. Watson hasn’t played competitive football in a long time so the Browns lose 24-22.

• Game 8 Bengals @ Browns. The Browns have never been beaten by Joe Burrow and there is a good reason for this- the Browns cornerbacks are lockdown outside CBs enabling their Secondary to close down spaces and attack Burrow. With Watson at the helm and in Cleveland, the Browns continue their winning run against Cincinnati. Browns win 28-21.

• BYE Week. This is a good time for the Browns to take a rest and see what’s working for Deshaun.
• Game 9 Browns @ Dolphins. The Dolphins are a big speedy threat with Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle, Mike Gesicki and Raheem Mostert. The question mark is Tua Tagovailoa. This is a high scoring game and the Browns win 34-31.

• Game 10 Browns @ Bills. The Bills have the strongest roster in the NFL with no glaring weaknesses so going to Buffalo is the biggest challenge the Browns face. The Browns lose 27-17.

• Game 11 Buccaneers @ Browns. Tom Brady sits behind one of the best offensive lines in the NFL and they have an excellent roster with few weaknesses. They must start favourites so the Browns lose 28-25.

• Game 12 Browns @ Texans. The Texans are not remotely competitive. Browns win 34-10.

• Game 13 Browns @ Bengals. At some point, the Burrow-Chase combination is going to get the better of the Browns. This is a high-scoring shootout win for the Bengals, Browns lose 35-30.

• Game 14 Ravens @ Browns. I’m going to split the Browns and Ravens record as I think Watson is a much better QB than Lamar Jackson and this has to count despite the Ravens Secondary. Browns win 20-10.

• Game 15 Saints @ Browns. This is a tough game for the Browns as the Saints were the second-best team at stopping the run last season. They have added Olave and Landry and are hoping Michael Thomas gets back to his 2019 form. This is going to be a close game and a narrow win with a last-second FG by Cade York. Browns win 24-22.

• Game 16 Browns @ Commanders. Washington has a tough pass rush with Jonathan Allen, Chase Young, and Montez Sweat, but a really poor Linebacker room, and this will be their downfall. Browns win 23-13.

• Game 17 Browns @ Steelers. The Browns are currently sitting at 11-5 and hoping for their first Division Title since 1989. There’s no way the Steelers are letting them do that in Pittsburgh, so pull out everything they have to win the game. Browns lose 20-17.

The Browns finish the regular season with an 11-6 record which should be good enough to make the postseason but may not be good enough for the AFC North division title. It’s going to be a very tough division to win and the Browns, Ravens, and Bengals will be in a scrap throughout the season. This record is dependent upon Watson playing from Game 6 and if they do make the postseason the Browns have a chance of making it to the AFC Championship game.

The post Predicting the Cleveland Browns record in 2022 appeared first on Pro Football Mania.

By: Ivan Mulinder

There is no news yet on whether Deshaun Watson will play in the 2022 season for the Cleveland Browns. He has 24 civil lawsuits against him, but two Texan grand juries said there wasn’t enough evidence for criminal proceedings, so it’s hard to predict what the NFL will do. This article is going to make the assumption that Watson will be banned for a number of games in 2022 (possibly as many as 6+ contests). This leads to the ultimate question: so what are the implications for the Browns upcoming season?

The Cleveland Browns have built a very good roster on both offense and defense, one that should be competing for the AFC North and the AFC Championship, but how much of this expectation is based on Deshaun Watson being the starting QB for the entire season? What is going to happen if Jacoby Brissett starts the first half of the season, or even plays the entire season? To try and answer this question we have to look at his meaningful playing time.

Jacoby Brissett was drafted in the 3rd Round in 2016 with pick 29. This will be his seventh season and he has started 37 of 60 games with 14 wins and 23 losses. He’s had 3 meaningful seasons in terms of playing time under his belt in 2021, 2019 and 2017. Let’s have a look at his stats in those three seasons.

2021 Season Stats

• Played 11 games
• 1,283 yards, 116.6 yards per game
• 141 completions, 62.7% completion rate
• 5 touchdowns, 4 interceptions
• Passer Rating 78.1

2019 Season Stats

• Played 15 games
• 2,942 yards
• 272 completions, 60.8% completion rate
• 18 touchdowns, 6 interceptions
• Passer Rating 88.0

2017 Season Stats

• Played 16 games
• 3,098 yards
• 276 completions, 58.8% completion rate
• 13 touchdowns, 7 interceptions
• Passer Rating 81.7

There’s a lot to potentially like here, but there are also some serious question marks in these stats. On the positive side, a Passer Rating of over 80 is considered to be good for a QB. Jacoby Brissett can therefore be considered a good QB. When given enough playing time he has accumulated some very good total yardage (with 2 of his 3 seasons averaging 3,000 yards). In both 2019 and 2021, he had a decent completion % and he is capable of putting some rushing yards on the ground if required with 260 rushing yards in 2017 and 228 in 2019. He rarely fumbles the ball with only 3 fumbles each in seasons 2017 & 2019.

On the other hand, there is clearly a lack of touchdowns. Good QBs would be expected to hit over 20+ in a season with closer to 30 being ideal. His interception rate per touchdown isn’t comfortable reading and his win-loss record has always been negative. In 2017 – he went 4-11 with the Colts and in 2019 he went 7-8. Statistically, he consistently ranks between 20-30 in the QB rankings depending on what data you look at. For example, with his air yards per attempt in 2021, he ranked 27th.

There are signs that the Cleveland Browns have a QB in Jacoby Brissett that can keep them competitive if he’s asked to start the first 6-8 games. The Colts went 7-8 in 2019, but they started the season 5-2. In the last two games, Brissett won two contests: beating Baltimore 22-10 (with 11 completions for 156 yards and a completion percentage of 70.2%) & Houston 17-9 (with 26 completions for 244 yards and a completion percentage of 64.5%). In addition, take a look at these more advanced passing rankings for last season:

• Deep Ball Catchable Pass Rate 1st
• Pressured Accuracy Rating 2nd
• Red Zone Accuracy Rating 2nd
• Accuracy Rating v Zone 2nd
• Clean Pocket Accuracy Rating 4th
• Deep Ball Accuracy Rating 7th

The Browns have a very strong run game with possibly the best OL in the NFL. With the run game getting Brissett to the Red Zone where he’s very accurate, and his OL giving him great protection to throw deep balls in a clean pocket, where he’s also very accurate, the Browns Front Office might just have the perfect backup for their first half of the season. Who do the Browns play in their first 6-8 games? In their first 6 games they play:

• @ Carolina (win?)
• v NY Jets (win?)
• v Pittsburgh (win?)
• @ Atlanta (win?)
• v Chargers
• v New England (win?)

The Browns then play away in Baltimore before another home game against Cincinnati followed by their Bye week. If Watson is banned for the first 6 games the season isn’t over for the Browns with Brissett more than capable of managing game wins over most of their opponents. However, if Watson gets 8+ game bans then we have to remember that Brissett is a 3rd Round pick and the stats would suggest that the more games he plays the more average to below-average he becomes. He is a backup QB and the Browns need Deshaun Watson playing if they’re going to win Championships.

The post What does Jacoby Brissett bring to the Browns? appeared first on Pro Football Mania.

By: Ivan Mulinder

The Cleveland Browns have just re-signed running back D’Ernest Johnson on a 1 year deal worth $2.43 million with $900K in guarantees. The Browns currently have six running backs on their roster with Chubb, Hunt, Johnson, Ford, Felton, and Stanton. The biggest factor in the decision to keep Johnson: Kareem Hunt missed 9 games last season and the Browns relied on Johnson as his replacement who played in all 17 games.

Johnson had 100 carries for 534 yards with 3 touchdowns. He achieved 5.3 yards per carry with an average of 31.4 per game. His PFF rushing grade was an outstanding 90.6. He is a reliable back at catching with 19 receptions for 137 yards, 7.2 yards per reception with a catch percentage of 76.0%. He clearly shined with his plethora of opportunities last season.

The implications for other RBs on the roster is intriguing. Kareem Hunt also signed a new deal before last season which was a 2 year, $12,000,000 contract, including $5,509,000 guaranteed, and an average annual salary of $6,000,000. In 2022, Hunt will earn a base salary of $1,350,000 with a roster bonus of $4,900,000, while carrying a cap hit of $6,250,000. In 2023 he becomes an Unrestricted Free Agent.

The Browns are likely to keep 4 running backs on their roster and we have to assume that Johnny Stanton is headed for the Practice squad. They are very unlikely going to place their new draft pick Jerome Ford on the Practise Squad as he will get signed by another team, and Ford has clearly been drafted as the replacement for either Hunt or Johnson. For me, Chubb and Ford are two locks in the Browns Running Back Room leaving two spots between Hunt, Johnson, and Felton.

Demetric Felton is cheap and he did well with limited carries as a running back, but is also very versatile as a kick/punt returner/special teams player and a wide receiver. He had only 7 carries as a running back for 24 yards with 3.4 yards per attempt and a PFF grade of 62.5. As a receiver he did very well, with 181 yards on 18 receptions with 2 touchdowns and a PFF grade of 78.4. He made 227 yards on punt returns with 7.1 yards/return and 172 yards on kick returns with 19.1 yards/return. It could well be that Felton is used as running back and a receiver now that Jakeem Grant Sr will be the primary punt/kick returner. Cooper, DPJ, Bell, Weston, Schwartz, and Felton could be the WR Room. If Michael Woods II comes good Felton could be moved to the RB Room.

In the near future, the Browns might get an offer for Kareem Hunt from a team that suddenly finds itself in need of a star running back due to an unexpected injury. In which case the Browns have sufficient depth in their roster to trade Hunt for a player and an early-round draft pick, which they’ll likely accept given that Hunt is gone the following season anyway.

The post Browns RB outlook in 2022 appeared first on Pro Football Mania.

By: Ivan Mulinder

The Cleveland Browns have had a very good postseason on offense, adding QB Deshaun Watson and WR Amari Cooper in free agency and drafting WR David Bell, K Cade York, RB Jerome Ford & WR Michael Woods II. Watson and Cooper upgrade the Offense in key positions and David Bell is known to have been a big Draft target of HC Kevin Stefanski who believes he is a special talent. However, given the current roster the Browns WR2 is currently Donovan Peoples-Jones, who hasn’t put up WR2 statistics to date, so why haven’t the Browns added another veteran wide receiver in free agency? Assuming they don’t add a veteran this can only be for a few key reasons:

David Njoku

Njoku has just signed a 4 year contract extension worth $56.75 million with $28 million guaranteed making him the 5th highest-paid TE in the NFL. The Browns clearly intend to utilize him a lot more than they have in the past. So far he has recorded only 15 touchdowns and 1,754 yards since 2017 which isn’t spectacular. Amongst TEs he was only 24th in receptions last year. He does have the potential to be great with yards per reception over 11+ for the last 3 seasons and a very good catch % of 67.9% last season, with a PFF receiving grade of 70.0. Given his lack of significant production so far the Browns must be planning to target Njoku a lot more in 2022 and expect a big improvement in his numbers. The scheme the Browns run certainly will suit Njoku and with a 6.4 frame, he will make an excellent Red Zone threat. With Harrison Bryant as TE2, the Browns have a very good backup, as last season he gained 11.1 yards per target, 233 yards, and had a catch % of 75%. The Browns Tight End Room could and must be used more effectively in 2022.

Running Game

The Browns have arguably the best RB Room in the NFL with Nick Chubb, Kareem Hunt, D’Ernest Johnson, Demetric Felton, and Jerome Ford. Not all of these will make the 53-man roster, and personally, I wouldn’t be surprised to see a trade before the start of the season, but these RBs are sitting behind one of the best Offensive Lines in the NFL, if not the No.1 OL in the NFL. Chubb has run for 1000+ yards a season for the last 3 years, with an average per run of 5.3 yards and an average per game of 83 yards with 36 touchdowns. Kareem Hunt averaged 4.9 yards per carry last season with 28 career touchdowns. Hunt is also a receiving threat with 7.9 yards per reception and a catch % of 81%. D’Ernest Johnson really proved his rushing threat last season when Hunt was injured notching up 5.3 yards per carry and 534 yards. The Browns are a running threat and really need to utilize this weapon if they aren’t going to invest further in the Wide Receiver Room. Sometimes it’s seemed to Browns fans that Stefanski has been too quick to drop the run game, so this must become a more consistent and persistent staple of the Browns attack next season.

The Wide Receiver Room

The Browns Front Office may actually believe the Wide Receiver Room is good enough. Amari Cooper is a clear WR1 and acknowledged as one of the best route runners in the NFL. He will be targeted the most and will be expected to put up big numbers. In 2021 he made 865 yards, with 12.7 yards per reception and 8 touchdowns, but he was under-utilized with only 68 receptions so expect these numbers to be much higher next season. Last season Donovan Peoples-Jones got 3 touchdowns, 597 yards, 17.6 yards per reception, with 34 receptions, but was only targeted 58 times. As WR2 these targets and receptions will increase so you can realistically expect his touchdowns and yardage to increase too. Maybe the Cooper-DPJ 1 & 2 isn’t such a bad idea after all? If David Bell is as good as the Browns Front Office believes him to be and with Schwartz 4.27 40 yard speed running around the edge and Isaiah Weston developing into the athletic freak his data suggests he’s going to be, the Browns could have a very young and very athletic Wide Receiver Room.

A lot of if’s there but, it’s the Browns coaches who are watching the development of these players and it could be that what they are seeing convinces them that they have enough, combined with their tight ends and running backs, to be a very dangerous offensive threat next season with Deshaun Watson at the helm.

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By: Ivan Mulinder

The Cleveland Browns have upgraded their offense over the off-season at quarterback and at wide receiver bringing in Deshaun Watson and Amari Cooper. I still believe they need to add another veteran wide receiver threat if the Browns are going to challenge the Chiefs, Bills and Bengals for the AFC Championship. What if they don’t add another quality wide receiver to their roster and run with who they have already, what will that mean to their chances of winning the AFC North and challenging for the AFC Championship? If this scenario plays out the Browns will need two players on offense to really step up and have a breakout season:

David Njoku

David Njoku was drafted in 2017 in Round 1 with pick 29. He’s 6.4, 246lbs, and ran the 40 in 4.64. His best 3 seasons have been in 2018, 2020, and 2021 where he’s played in the majority of the games. His stats are fairly consistent scoring 4 touchdowns in 2018 & 2021, with 631 receiving yards in 2018 and 475 receiving yards in 2021. His catch % has been between 65%-67% in all of these seasons and his yards per return have been between 11-13 each season. His PFF receiving grades were 65.3 in 2018, 64.1 in 2020, and 70.0 in 2021. David Njoku is a good player, but with Amari Cooper being the only great proven wide receiver talent on the team, and with the Browns often regarded as a tight end favored team, he’s going to need to take a greater load of the team’s yardage and red zone touchdowns. He was 12th in tight end touchdowns last season, but he needs to move into the top 5. Travis Kelce ranked 1st with 9 touchdowns and was second in receiving yards with 1,125 way ahead of Njoku’s 475. The Browns need to do a better job at scheming for Njoku as his catch % was actually better than Kelce’s last season so a lot is resting on this position and this player.

Donovan Peoples-Jones

There is arguably an even greater pressure on DPJ to step up. Currently, he is the Browns WR2 behind Amari Cooper so if the Browns Front Office don’t bring in another wide receiver they must have a lot of faith in him. The stats are mixed. On the positive side, PFF graded him 73.1 in receiving in 2020 although this went down to 67.0 last season. In 2021 he had 597 receiving yards on 34 receptions with 58 targets and 17.6 yards per return. He had 3 touchdowns and a catch % of 58.6%. He’s a Round 6 drafted wide receiver picked at 187, but he was badly trained and under-utilized at Michigan which is likely why he fell so far. He has a lot of potentials, but he’s really going to need to step and improve drastically if he’s going to have the production the Browns need out of their WR2 to be very successful in 2022.

The Browns have just re-signed their right defensive end, Jadeveon Clowney, on a 1 year $11 million deal. This is excellent news for the Browns as it means they just need to add a run stopper in their defensive tackle room to make their defense truly elite. PFF had Clowney with 11 sacks last season, a 62.8 run defense grade, and a 69.1 pass rush grade. He’s a crucial player to the Browns defensive line and relieves the pressure on Chase Winovich to be that DE2 opposite, Garrett. Chase Winovich had his best form in 2020 with 5.5 sacks, 6 tackles for loss and 12 quarterback hits so if he can improve upon this their DE Room will be very impressive. The Browns need their Linebackers to take the next step up and there is one player in particular they will be hoping to see make great strides forward.

Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah

JOK fell to the Browns in the 2020 Draft in Round 2 at pick 52. He’s 6.2, 215lbs, and fly’s around the field stopping the run. Per PFF, his run defense grade was 78.7 last season with an overall grade of 76.5. In 14 games he made 3 sacks, had 2 forced fumbles (5th), 3 tackles for loss, 4 quarterback hits, and 49 solo tackles (50th). He achieved these stats as a rookie player, so if he gets better in year 2 the Browns will have an excellent second line of defense in front of their already outstanding defensive backs.

If Njoku, DPJ, and JOK all have big seasons in 2022 then the Browns could catapult themselves into the AFC Championship talk, especially if they add a run-stopping defensive tackle and a veteran wide receiver.

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By: Ivan Mulinder

If the Cleveland Browns were to start the 2022 season now, they would have 3 weaknesses in their roster that could limit their season to 9-10 wins (even with Deshaun Watson playing all 17 games). These weaknesses are:

1. Wide Receiver
2. Defensive End
3. Defensive Tackle

Wide Receiver

The Browns WR1 is Amari Cooper, who is a very good Wide Receiver. In 2021, the Cowboys didn’t use him to his full potential, but he was still 12th in receiving touchdowns and gained 865 yards on 68 receptions. He had 8.3 yards per target and a catch % of 65.4%. When he has played in most of the games in a season he has consistently gained over 1000+ receiving yards. His PFF receiving grade last season was 73.9. Deshaun Watson with Amari Cooper should be a great combination, the problem is the Browns don’t have any great wide receiver talent below Amari Cooper.

Donovan People-Jones is their WR2 currently. He had 3 touchdowns, 597 yards on 34 receptions with a catch % of 61.5%, 11.6 yards per target, and a PFF receiving grade of 67. DPJ is a promising young wide receiver who Watson should elevate further, but that is conjecture at the moment.

David Bell, the Browns wide receiver drafted in Round 3 at pick 99 from Purdue, is highly regarded by the Browns Front Office, but he’s still a rookie. The Browns need to add another quality wide receiver and the obvious target is Will Fuller.

Will Fuller was playing with Deshaun Watson in 2020 and in 11 games he scored 8 touchdowns with 879 yards on 53 receptions and a catch % of 70.7%. His PFF receiving grade was 85. The problem with Will Fuller is he’s injury-prone, missing virtually all of last season with a broken thumb.

The Browns have an excellent Quarterback in Deshaun Watson. The Bengals and Chiefs have shown what is possible with a top 5 QB with excellent receivers and an average defense. Let’s remind ourselves of Watson’s 2020 statistics:

• 4,823 passing yards which was 1st in the NFL
• 33 passing touchdowns which was 7th in the NFL
• 70.2% completion rate which is excellent
• 1.3% interception %
• PFF overall grade of 92.5 and a passing grade of 91.2

The Browns have two very good Tight Ends in David Njoku and Harrison Bryant, but their receiving threat needs another quality addition if they are to emulate the Bengals and Chiefs successes who both had glaring holes in Defense. The Browns have 2 glaring holes in their Defense.

Defensive End

The Defensive End Room in Cleveland is similar to that of their Wide Receiver Room in that they have a great No1, but nothing great below him. Myles Garrett at the LDE position is outstanding. Chase Winovich is the top choice at RDE. Chase Winovich last season had a PFF run-blocking grade of 67.2 and pass-rushing grade of 48.9. His best year was in 2020 when he had 85 combined tackles, 6 tackles for loss, 12 QB hits, and 5.5 sacks.

Behind Chase is rookie Alex Wright (who was their Round 3 pick at 78 in the Draft). Behind Myles Garrett is Stephen Weatherly. His grades last season were 6 tackles for loss, 7 QB hits, and a PFF pass-rush grade of 58.9 with a run-blocking grade of 49.

The Browns need Jadeveon Clowney back. In 2021 playing for the Browns he had 11 sacks, 19 QB hits, and 11 tackles for loss. He’s clearly a step up from the Browns backup defensive ends and would make the Edge Room good, with Grant Delpit and Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah adding further potential at blitzing.

Defensive Tackle

The Browns really don’t seem to value the defensive tackle position and I don’t understand why. The Browns get gashed every year by running teams and with the Ravens in their division, you’d think they would have learned their lesson by now. As it stands their DT Room is poor.

I think Taven Bryan is their likely starting RDT who had 2 sacks last season, 4 tackles for loss, 8 QB hits, 56 combined tackles, with a PFF run-blocking grade of 44.4. Behind him is Tommy Togiai who had a PFF run-blocking grade of 49 last season.

Over at LDT, the starters are going to be either Sheldon Day or Jordan Elliott. Sheldon Day is the Browns current best run-blocking DT with a PFF grade of 59.1. This shows how weak the Browns are at running blocking Tackle. Elliott has a PFF run-blocking grade of 45. The Browns at least drafted an LDT in Perrion Winfrey, but his likely development is that of an interior pass rusher as he’s very aggressive with very long arms. They really need him to develop into a better run blocking tackle.

A solution can be found in Free Agency with Akiem Hicks still available. He’s not a long-term solution to their run blocking woes, as he’s getting old now, but when he plays a full season he consistently stacks up solid statistics at tackling and QB hits. His PFF run-blocking grade has recently been in the mid 60’s, but in 2018 he hit 92.7!

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