Cleveland Browns: Tall Wide Receivers Must Be Added

As the Cleveland Browns determine who they will add to their wide receiver position this offseason, they must remember what the team did not have last season.

The one aspect of the Cleveland Browns offense they were missing in 2015 was the one thing you cannot coach — height. The Browns extremely lacked the height that is needed at the wide receiver position to compete at a high level.

In today’s NFL where most quarterbacks are throwing the football to players with power forward’s size, fans were stuck watching the Cleveland Browns passing to point guard’s size players. Arguably, the most dangerous weapon on the Browns offense, though a reliable target, was Travis Benjamin but he is only 5’10.

Benjamin, a legit NFL receiver, is limited like other short wide receivers with his red zone capabilities. The red zone was also an area in which the Browns struggled this past season. The Browns finished dead last as they converted an abysmal 38.3% of their red zone opportunities into touchdowns.

The 2015-2016 Cleveland Browns wide receiving core struggled could not make an impact. The receivers are led by Benjamin, who is supplemented by 6’2 Brian Hartline and 5’7 Andrew Hawkins. Both Hawkins and Hartline can help NFL offenses and have proven that in the past and during their time in Cleveland.

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Hartline and Hawkins are then backed up by Taylor Gabriel at 5’8 and Marlon Moore who is 6’0 tall. Most defenses do not see those players as a huge threat on the outside. Having no sizable help on the outside makes it more difficult for Hartline to make space.

Outside of Hartline, all of these players are six-foot tall or under (Moore, Benjamin, Hawkins, and Gabriel) but they can still make an impact. In order for them to succeed, however, the Cleveland Browns need to add size on the outside to help create space for them inside.

Cleveland’s most reliable target and the go-to option in their receiving game was clearly Gary Barnidge. Barnidge, who played in this season’s Pro Bowl, carried the offense although he is not particularly mobile after the catch.

This past season, Barnidge was tied for 36th in yards after the catch with 343, which is very solid. When Barnidge’s 343 yards is compared to other top players at his position, it is clear that he held his own. The tight end position was led by New England Patriots’ Rob Gronkowski with 565 YAC, followed by Kansas City’s Travis Kelce at 533, Washington Redskins’ Jordan Reed with 462, and Carolina Panthers’ Greg Olsen with 364.

The bottom line is Barnidge can only do so much by himself to stretch the defense and the Browns offense needs another reliable target with size by his side.

Looking at the leaders in the AFC North division, they seem to have what the Cleveland Browns lack in size at receiver. The Pittsburgh Steelers have Antonio Brown at 5’10 with a developing 6’4 Martavis Bryant. The Cincinnati Bengals are led by 6’4 A.J. Green, followed by a 6’2 Marvin Jones and a 6’2 Mohamed Sanu. The Bengals also have a pro bowl tight end of their own in Tyler Eifert who is 6’6.

Is a 6’4 Josh Gordon the answer for the Cleveland Browns height/red zone problems in 2016? There are a lot of questions still surrounding Gordon and his return, but the thing no one can question is his talent and much-needed size.

Next: 10 Players Who Should Not Be Back In '16

The Browns should look for size early and often in the 2016 NFL Draft if they want to keep up to pace with the NFL and their division.

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