The Browns defense has been bad in 2020 but that doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t still look at the five most deserving players so far.
The Cleveland Browns defense has gotten even worse from 2019 to 2020, something that wasn’t supposed to be the case with Andrew Berry in charge. The Browns let several key players walk and replaced them with bargain-basement free agents and rookies who fans greatly overvalued. The rookies have not impacted the game in a positive way at all, and the free agents have mostly been a disaster.
That doesn’t mean that everyone on the Browns defense has been bad, quite the contrary. Some players, not many but some players have been downright good. So it’s not unreasonable to take a second from our day and salute them for playing well enough to get noticed.
Keep in mind that the entire defense has looked bad at times, so really, what were you expecting with some of these picks?
#5 – DB Andrew Sendejo
Someone had to go here. Frankly, I don’t think the safeties have been as bad as many, at least over the last three or four weeks. Ronnie Harrison joining the team really changed the back end up of the defense, and Andrew Sendejo has been the most sure-fire tackler the team has. He’s literally the one person who actually wraps and drives. Everyone else tries to “body” the ball carrier.
Assuming the Browns have money to spend, Sendejo won’t be back next year as a starter but considering every other player (not on this list) has glaring issues in their game it’s not hard to see why Sendejo warrants this spot. The problem many fans keep misconstruing is his “lateness” in plays. That’s not the case, however, as he’s always coming in to cover someone else’s blown coverage. With better corners opposite Denzel Ward, you wouldn’t need Sendejo to fly across the field and pull the team out at the last second.
Right now he’s second on the team in tackles with 43, while also posting a forced fumble to his name as well. One gripe that is fair about Sendejo, is that while he’s not getting beat as often as people think, he is not getting turnovers or making big plays very often either. That absolutely needs to change.
If you’re still screeching, keep in mind when it was time to sit a safety, it was Karl Joseph and not Sendejo who got benched. Clearly Kevin Stefanski knows more about who’s making mistakes than fans do and Sendejo was spared. That says a lot.
#4 – DL Porter Gustin
In a lot of ways, Porter Gustin is the Chris Hubbard of defense. He’s not supposed to be this high and if other guys were playing better, he wouldn’t be. That said, Gustin has shown time and time again that he has the versatility and ability to play defense in the NFL.
He’s got 18 total tackles so far for the Browns while playing in only about half of the snaps on defensive. He’s also made most of his efforts by getting two tackles for a loss and a QB hit.
His versatility and agility have been key to his performances. Gustin has lined up a number of times inside at a tackle spot while also lining up opposite Myles Garrett on most occasions. While he only plays about 50% of the defensive snaps on the team right now, he’s shown to be a more consistent player than Olivier Vernon, who is starting to develop a reputation of half-assing plays. Gustin might be like Sendejo to some degree, a guy who’s good enough to start this year but not next.
If that’s the case or not is up in the air, as he’s someone who needs consistency in the lineup to prove one way or another. Right now with the injuries to the team and the lack of productivity out of several of the bigger names, Gustin has proven that he deserves more time. Maybe he can cement himself as a starter for this team, or maybe he can just fill the gap until some help arrives, whenever that is.
#3 – DB Ronnie Harrison
Ronnie Harrison, in my opinion, has been the best defensive acquisition that Andrew Berry has made. Which isn’t saying much. The linebackers he brought in have been trash, the cornerbacks he brought in have been trash, the defensive line helped he brought in have been trash and while I’ve defended Sendejo from time to time, nowhere am I saying he’s the answer at safety long term.
Harrison, however, is.
He’s a high volume tackler from the safety position (19 tackles in Weeks 7 and 8 combined), who has shown to have a nice nose for coverage. While he may never turn into Troy Polamalu back there, if he maxes out at a Jabrill Peppers type, then that’d be enough for a few years. Harrison has already made a difference in the defensive passing attack, helping limit the number of deep balls tried against this team and while they’re still going to give up some throughout the year, there really isn’t any doubt that Harrison has changed the makeup of this team.
Can he continue to do this for years to come is going to be the question and if he can, then maybe the Browns can expedite a near-complete defensive rebuild in 2021.
#2 – Denzel Ward
It’s not hard to predict the next two players on this list. Why is Denzel Ward number two? Because with many minor and lingering injuries, Ward was able to step up and return very much near to his rookie form in 2020. He’s made some mistakes in the coverage, namely against Pittsburgh, and in the first two weeks was out of position a lot against the opposition passing attack but besides those moments, Ward has played very well.
He might be a borderline Pro Bowler in 2020 as of right now, but the season is only halfway over, which means he could absolutely up his stock. Having an entire week off, plus another week to prepare for Houston will allow those minor injuries time to heal up and go away. Once Ward is unhindered by them, he should return to his All-Pro form that he was in in 2018, even if he didn’t make an All-Pro team.
He’s on pace to play all 16 games, a career first. He’s already tied each of his last two seasons in pass deflections with 11, and he leads the team in pass deflections as well, while coming in at number seventh in tackles as well with 30 total tackles.
#1 – Myles Garrett
There is no surprise that Myles Garrett is number one. While I’ll never be comfortable paying one a defensive end as much as Garrett is making, that doesn’t take away from the fact he’s attempting to earn every cent of it. While he’s often a non-factor on defense against the rush, Garrett has stepped up this year compared to years past with getting to the quarterback. So while he only has 25 tackles on the year (less than Denzel Ward), he leads the team in sacks (9), fumbles forced (4), tackles for a loss (5), and QB hits (13).
His impact against the passing game is noticeable but he does, for whatever reason, disappear for stretches sometimes. Garrett wasn’t very effective in the first few weeks of 2020, or the closing weeks of 2019. Garrett has also played a full season just once in his four years in the NFL. He’s also now currently dealing with knee and ankle issues at the bye week.
None of that takes away from the fact that Garrett has been the very best player on the Browns defense in 2020 and a top 10 player on defense in the NFL. A clear Defensive Player of the Year candidate, Garrett has to remain focus and determined (as well as healthy) in the last eight games of 2020.