The Browns have now completed three-quarters of the season and in keeping with past trends, we’re looking at the five best offensive players through 12 games.
The Cleveland Browns have seen a lot of improvement from Week 1, and the biggest reason why has been arguably the league’s most dangerous offense. Unlike teams like the Chiefs, who are only ever going to beat you one way, the Browns come ready to beat you with a swiss army night of nightmare fuel. Able to slow down Nick Chubb? Bam, Kareem Hunt on a screen. Think you got the short dink and dunk passes covered, Baker Mayfield goes over the top for 53 yards and a touchdown to Donovan “Clifford Franklin” Peoples-Joes.
Think you got a great defensive front? The Browns have five men who’d belong in King Arthur’s Knights of the Round Table as they do in the Pro Bowl. Five men who protect their quarterback and do so very well.
Let’s take a look at these five top guys through 12 weeks.
Joel Bitonio
Joe Bitonio looked like he was having a few rough games there in the middle of the season, but like always, Bitonio returned to form. Now he and the rest of the offensive line is back into the full swing of things and he’s really making an impact on the unit. Part of the poor play early on may be due to his o-line mate, Jedrick Wills, who isn’t having the rookie season many had hoped he would have. While Wills is playing fine, many of his mistakes aren’t things pro-level players should be making. PFF has Wills rated at a 62.5 while ranking Bitonio at 87.0
While PFF isn’t always right, in the case of Wills’ play they’re spot on. On the line, the need for simpatico between the players is so important. If you have just one bad player or make one mistake, the whole line becomes ineffective.
Holding calls, false start calls, and lateral movement all seem to be issues for Wills. Luckily though, the more Wills played, the better he understood the offense and that meant fewer mental mistakes when it came to the assignments. That in turn made Bitonio look better, as Wills wasn’t falling prey to some of the more daunting stunts that he would see. As Wills improved, Bitonio regained his form. Wills has a way to go before he’s a Pro Bowler but playing next to Bitonio has been the best thing for the rookie.
As for Bitonio, he’s on his way to a third straight Pro Bowl and possibly going down as one of the greatest Browns ever. At least in the last thirty years.
Jack Conklin
Talk about a great pickup. While Jack Conklin isn’t getting the MVP talk of a Wyatt Teller or heralded as the best at his position as a Myles Garrett, that doesn’t take away from the fact that Conklin has been marvelous in his role as the team’s right tackle. In his time in Cleveland, Conklin has become arguably the team’s second-best offensive linemen next to Teller, and while not as dynamic as Teller due to the positions, he may even be a better pure blocker than Teller.
So far through his time in Cleveland, he’s committed just two mistakes. That’s it. One is a penalty he received, the other is the sack he’s given up. That’s it. Those are the only two blemishes on his record so far as a member of the Cleveland Browns. Sure, it’s unrealistic to expect him to keep that pace but it’s not unrealistic to think that he can’ keep those numbers down throughout his time with the Browns.
Play against some of the better defensive ends this year, like against Montez Sweat and J.J. Watt have shown just how incredible he is at sealing off the edge from pass rushers. Plus, through the first four or five games, the Browns could only run through he and Teller’s side for some reason. That’s no longer the case now, but for a good chunk of the beginning weeks, Conklin was one of the few guys able to actually open up holes.
Now the whole team can do it, but that doesn’t negate his consistency over the year.
Wyatt Teller
Wyatt Teller is the best run blocker on the team, but he’s just as bad as Jedrick Wills with regards to his pass blocking. Wills leads the team with sacks given up with four, but Teller’s not far behind with three. So why does Teller make the list but Wills doesn’t? Because Teller has been an absolute animal in the offensive trenches. The tank of the offensive line, Teller has taken to zone blocking better than hoped, and while his issues with his technique against pass rushers are still there, he more than makes up for it.
Teller as a run blocker really doesn’t have an equal, his ability to get downfield and target linebackers is impressive, and his lateral quickness when to get ahead of his running backs on pulling attempts is truly elite. His hands seem to be the issue though, especially when going up against physical interior linemen.
He can’t seem to stay in front of good pass rushers, that’s where his issues lie mostly. For whatever skills or technique he lacks currently as a pass blocker, he more than makes up for it as a run blocker. He may not have an equal in the league in that skillset. Sure, Jack Conklin is a better all-around blocker than Teller, but Teller is still the better pure run blocker.
Buffalo must be kicking themselves over letting him go.
Nick Chubb
It’s hard to talk about offensive linemen for x-amount of words. It’s not har, however, to talk about Nick Chubb for any amount of words. Chubb is arguably a top-three running back, and as a pure runner, he has no equal. Sure his combine numbers don’t blow you out of the water (a barely 4.5 40-yard dash), but the thing that Chubb does better than anyone, is his ability to move laterally at the of scrimmage. Not just with huge jukes to the left or right, but his ability to subtly shift his hips just enough to “get skinny” and cut through a collapsing pocket as it fills with defenders.
Chubb’s shiftiness is his biggest strength, with his second biggest strength being, well, his strength. If Chubb was just shifty, he’d be really good. Yet, now you have a shifty running back, who’s barely 5’10, and now you have a hard to hit, small target. So you need to be nearly perfect when throwing a tackle at him. Now you have to deal with the fact that this tiny target, can run through weak arm tackles, and now what do you do? How do you tackle a running back that’s already hard to hit, that can evade you, and run through you? Simple answer, you really can’t.
There’s a reason why he’s averaging 6.0 yards per carry this year and has a YPC of 5.3 for his career. Chubb is one yard shy of 800 yards and missed four games. Imagine what his stats would be like if he hadn’t missed those four games. On top of that, he’s scored seven touchdowns. Chubb’s only issue of contention is he’s largely ineffective in the passing game. He’s not built to be a good dual-threat, that’s Kareem Hunt’s job.
Chubb’s job is to simply break the ankles, arms, and spirits of opposing defenses.
Baker Mayfield
Baker Mayfield has been the best player on this offense for 12 weeks. To those paying attention, you agree. To those not paying attention, you can’t really deny it anymore. Firstly, he’s yet to miss a game. Even when he had such badly bruised ribs that he couldn’t sleep, he still went out and played. Granted, ill-advised. That was a mistake on Kevin Stefanski’s part because a severely bruised core affects how a quarterback throws and sleep deprivation can affect one’s ability to process things correctly. Seeing as how Mayfield was unable to sleep well, it’s not unfair to say he was probably sleep deprived.
Secondly, he’s beaten some of the best defenses and scored points on them too. Remember when everyone thumbed their noses at Washington and how well Mayfield played against them? Well, Ben Roethlisberger went 33 of 53 (62%) for 305 yards, two touchdowns, and an interception in a loss. Mayfield, against a healthier version of that defense, went 16 of 23 (69.57%) for 156 yards, two touchdowns, and no interceptions in a 14-point victory that was never as close as the score would lead you to believe.
Mayfield threw for 76% and four touchdowns against the Titans with zero interceptions to his name, and 334 yards. Roethlisberger? 65% for 268, two touchdowns, and three interceptions.
Thirdly, look at his play over the year. He’s been as consistent as possible, has eliminated turnovers greatly from his 2019 campaign, and looks calm and poised. He does have a footwork issue, but that’s correctable.
He’s putting up impressive stats, completing 63% of his passes, for 2,442 yards, with 21 touchdowns and only seven interceptions. All while only being sacked 17 times. Part of that is great line play, yes, but the other part is his ability to extend plays by leaving the pocket.
He’s come a long way and has done just about everything one can ask of him to warrant not just a fourth year, but a second contract.