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Cleveland Browns: 10 Players Who Should Not Be Back In ’16

By Ryan Rosko

Aug 13, 2015; Cleveland, OH, USA; Dawg Pound flag after a touchdown during the first quarter of preseason NFL football game against the Washington Redskins at FirstEnergy Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports
Aug 13, 2015; Cleveland, OH, USA; Dawg Pound flag after a touchdown during the first quarter of preseason NFL football game against the Washington Redskins at FirstEnergy Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports /
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Dec 20, 2015; Seattle, WA, USA; Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson (3) escapes from pressure brought by Cleveland Browns outside linebacker Paul Kruger (99) during the first quarter at CenturyLink Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports /

10. Paul Kruger

The Cleveland Browns are unlikely to move on from Kruger this offseason because the team needs to acquire more talent at the linebacker position. However, there is still that chance Kruger gets cut, especially if the analytics severely is not in his favor.

Kruger also is not a free agent until after the 2017 season, and his remaining base salaries are $6.5 million and $7 million in 2016 and 2017 respectively. Cleveland is not going to eat money on Kruger’s contract despite his down year but they should.

Kruger’s 2015 season was his worst as a member of the Cleveland Browns. Having appeared in every game with 15 starts, Kruger had 16 tackles and 11 assisted tackles, along with 2.5 sacks. Those statistics are far from Kruger’s 2014 season when he had 36 tackles, 17 assisted tackles, and 11 sacks. What is a benefit for Kruger in 2016 is that after previous bad years, he improved the following season.

As we all know Ray Horton loves to blitz. Should Kruger return, his level of play should bounce back because Horton will send Kruger on multiple blitzes to get the opposing quarterbacks.

Next: 9. Short Wide Receivers Do Not Cut It

Kruger also should be placed in a better position to make plays behind the line of scrimmage.

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