OBJ Introduced In Cleveland; What Does The Browns' Offense Look Like?
The Browns finally introduced Odell Beckham Jr. today and did it by putting him alongside Baker Mayfield, his best friend Jarvis Landry and Myles Garrett.
What a beautiful sight. They were 1-31 a few years ago and had a dogshit roster. Now, look at just this group of four players!
I figured this is a great time, with a few weeks to go before the NFL Draft, to look at the offense and some of the best plays from last season for all of their weapons. I will leave this mostly to videos, so you can enjoy some classic moving images as opposed to just written words.
We can start off with the easy one, the leader, the future (or the present, I guess): Baker Mayfield. He set the rookie touchdown record last season with 27 touchdowns. He made some ridiculous throws all season long…
The creativity with Freddie Kitchens calling players helped Baker immensely as he threw 19 touchdowns and 8 after the coaching change. Just look at this fake jet-sweep with a toss to himself that help set up Baker for a touchdown pass to Jarvis Landry.
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Even with all of the great throws, his catch for a 2-point conversation against the Jets in Week 3 was still my favorite play of the season.
Baker will need to improve with the pressure on and arrival of OBJ, but he had about as good of a rookie season as a quarterback can have.
While everyone is talking about the wide receivers, the running back position is equally stacked for the Browns. With that said, there are two hang-ups: first off, Duke Johnson might still be traded and secondly, Kareem Hunt is serving an 8-game suspension. Despite the uncertainty, for the time being, Nick Chubb was one of the best backs in the NFL last season and didn’t really get the full workload until they canned Hue Jackson and Todd Haley.
The highest graded running back in the NFL last season according to PFF, Chubb brings speed, size and elite vision to the Browns’ backfield. His ability to gain yards after contact is special and he is always a dangerous threat to break open a huge run.
Duke Johnson is an interesting case and has the potential to be an x-factor for the Browns if they keep him around. The team has never really figured out how to properly use him and it surprises me that the front office wouldn’t want to see him perform with a full year under Freddie Kitchens. He’s so damn quick and athletic and I wish they’d use him more like Tyreek Hill, especially since he is a great pass-catcher.
UPDATE: Duke Johnson has requested a trade.
Ah boy. I haven’t really discussed Kareem Hunt. He isn’t a guy I want to particularly root for, but, bottom line, the former Kansas City Chiefs is on the Browns and will be on the field following Week 8. Freddie Kitchens loves two-back sets and the duo of Hunt and Chubb is scary to think about.
Even with question marks for this group, if things pan out, the Browns best weapon might be their backfield.
This is the group everyone has their eye on, and rightfully so. Adding a future Hall of Famer in Odell Beckham Jr. is a big deal and it goes without saying that he is one of the biggest superstar athletes to ever play for a Cleveland franchise. This is a dynamic group that goes much deeper than just their #1 and #2 options.
My guy Jake Burns (amazing follow for Browns fans) did a great breakdown of OBJ and how he will fit into the Browns’ offense.
Also…
Jarvis Landry was okay this season at times and great in some moments. I think he’s due for a fantastic season alongside OBJ after a year with some drops and a lower catch rate (which Jake noted comes from the fact he ran longer routes than usual last year). Still, he posseses elite skills like hands and footwork that solidify him and OBJ as one of the best wide receiver tandems in the NFL.
It isn’t something you can measure on paper, but pairing OBJ and Jarvis, high school and college teammates will do wonders for each other. Not to mention Browns’ wide receivers coach Adam Henry coached both of them at LSU.
Antonio Callaway is a guy who I have been all over in terms of hype since they drafted him. Partly due to the Josh Gordon trade, Callaway had a ton of struggles, especially with drops, early on in the season. Once Freddie Kitchens took over, his production and efficiency went way up. He has blazing fast speed and as he continues to clean things up, he is going to be an insane weapon for Baker as defenses key in on OBJ and Jarvis.
Lastly, Rashard Higgins announced he was officially back with the Browns on Monday, which is fantastic news for Baker Mayfield. Higgins, who many had written off after some lackluster play during the Browns disastrous stretch under Hue Jackson, was a major comfort blanket for Baker last season. Their timing and chemistry are impeccable and Baker clearly missed Higgins when the wide receiver missed time last season.
Will Higgins ever be elite? I doubt it. But they don’t need him to be. He does everything right and that’s exactly the type of comfortable and reliable target Baker needs.
The tight end group is led by David Njoku, followed by two guys in Seth DeValve and Demetrius Harris who carry some question marks. DeValve is a big target, but can never stay on the field, while Harris is a giant at 6’7″ but is pretty terrible at holding on the football when a pass hits his hands. Regardless, Njoku is going to carry the load, especially after a solid season.
The third-year tight end out of Miami (Florida), Njoku had a rough start to the season with seven drops last year, only to fix it all and decrease the number all the way down to just one drop while under Freddie Kitchens. He is an athletic freak and I expect him to be one of the top five tight ends in the NFL by season’s end.
DeValve can do some nice things but, again, he just needs to stay on the field and avoid injuries.
Demetrius Harris just looks like a guy who should be a top tight end in the NFL. At 6’7″ he should be able to catch everything. The problem? He doesn’t. I don’t know if he will pan out, but the former Kansas City Chief must show some sort of promise to former GM and current Browns GM John Dorsey.
EDIT: A good point has been raised that Harris’ big goal will be to block, but I know new Offensive Coordinator Todd Monken loves multiple tight end sets, so I still expect him to get targets.
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Who do you think is going to be the biggest weapon for the Browns this season? There’s no doubt they’re fucking stacked on offense. It all comes down to whether or not they can put it togehter. Exciting times for the franchise, folks! Go Browns.