Cleveland Browns: 5 players who must improve the most for 2019

Five players whose improvement could help the Cleveland Browns land in the playoffs next season, something the team hasn’t done since 2002.

Enthusiasm surrounding the Cleveland Browns is at an all-time high, and that’s after a 7-8-1 mark in 2018.

Hey, it’s the most wins for the franchise since the 2007 version of the Browns won 10 games. So, you can understand why some of us are dreaming of an AFC Championship in town next season where the Factory of Sadness turns into the Factory of Gladness.

Of course, none of this would be possible without Baker Mayfield.

With the No. 1 pick ascending to the role of franchise quarterback, everything, in theory should become easier.

If these five players improve areas of their respective games, next year’s Browns could be even more of a force as the franchise seeks to end its 16-year playoff drought.

David Njoku

David Njoku‘s name on this list shouldn’t be viewed as a slight because he actually had a really impressive season.

The is more of a friendly reminder that the former first-round pick can get a lot better. He’s only 22 and has already completed two seasons.

The big concern with Njoku is that he suffers from drops. In fact, he had eight drops last season, which as tied for the lead among tight ends, according to Pro Football Focus. Travis Kelce was the co-leader.

But Njoku  is a playmaker in every since of the word.

In his final four games, he had long gains of 28, 20, 66 and 42 yards. For the year, he caught 56 balls for 639 yards.

If Njoku can remedy his drops, he could go on to put out monster statistics because he looked like such a beast in the final months running with the ball after the catch.

When the Browns drafted Njoku, he was pretty raw, but the expectation was that he’d become an elite pass catching tight end since he was picked in the first round of the draft.

Njoku took a step toward that ceiling this past season, but there’s still a long way to go to reach the top.