These are three positions that could carry the team in 2021.
We talked about the three position groups that may struggle in 2021, so let’s take a lot at the three position groups that could carry the Browns in 2021. Like with the other list, this is speculative. We’re using our best critical thinking hats to get to the conclusion but at the end of it and after everything’s been considered; we have to remember it’s June.
No one has played any real football yet. It’s very possible the best player on the team is the punter. It’s also possible that Baker Mayfield breaks every regular-season record in history. It’s all up in the air. There are no guarantees.
That said, with the way things look currently, we can take our best guess as to what positions may stand out in 2021. There’s always a position group that stands out. Always. For instance, in 2020 the Browns had the running backs, the offensive line and one could argue the quarterbacks.
Is that going to be the case this time around? Well, possibly. No one here is claiming to see the future. It’s all educated guesses, obviously. We’re just using the logic and facts that we have to try and see what the tea leaves say, so to speak. Things could obviously happen, like injuries or declining play. That’s always a possibility. If you want to ignore the reality of the sport these men play, fine, but you’re only doing yourself a disservice.
So yes, any one of these three categories could be awful in 2021, they could also be fantastic. Until that first whistle blows, we’re all just guessing. So let’s find out who is up first.
Cornerback
The Browns have one of the best crop of corners from one-to-four in the NFL. Sure, Denzel Ward is the only one in the top ten, but assuming Greg Newsome isn’t a bust, it’d be easy to wager that every single one of the guys on the roster would rank in the top 60 at the very least. Considering there are probably close to 120+ corners expected to make NFL teams (assuming every team carries five), having four in the top-60 is pretty impressive. Again, this is if Newsome steps up.
As rough as Greedy Williams’ rookie year was, his play in 2019 was still leaps and bounds better than Kevin Johnson or M.J. Stewart’s in 2020. Troy Hill is going to be a force to be reckoned with, and if Ward can stay healthy for most, if not the entire season, then the Browns secondary will be completely different.
Not only is the pressure from the secondary going to make the safties look so much better in 2021 than they were in 2020, but the ability to actually keep guys covered will allow the defensive line to capitalize and pressure quarterbacks more often.
The one thing we should all be hoping for is a better group of tackling corners as well. When facing off with a guy like Lamar Jackson, you want to make sure if you stick him with a shot, that you actually stick him. The worst thing is watching guys throw shoulders into Jackson and watching him just roll off the hit and keep going.
Running back
The Browns have three pretty solid runners. The big issue they were dealing with was having a real pass-catching threat out of the backfield like Duke Johnson provided. They addressed that need potentially in Demetric Felton. As a rule of thumb, it’s always best to never put huge expectations on late-round picks, as they were late-round picks for a reason. It’s better to be surprised rather than disappointed.
Yet, with Felton’s skill set, he could, in theory, give the running backs a brand new weapon to use in their fight for a Super Bowl.
The Browns already have Nick Chubb, who’s arguably the second-best running back in the NFL behind Christian McCaffery and easily the best pure runner the NFL has. Like with Denzel Ward, Chubb has to stay healthy. The one thing that was proved in spades in 2020 when Chubb was out, was that Kareem Hunt is a good number two running back, but a bad number one.
Hunt isn’t the change-of-pace back he was advertised to be. No longer elusive in the open field, Hunt spent most of 2020 looking for people to hit, instead of looking for people to get around. If you’re looking for someone who stretches the field and makes defenses pay for bunching up in the box, Hunt isn’t your guy. Yet, he’s a powerful enough runner that he can work in the system Kevin Stefanski uses. He’ll probably never be a 1,000 rusher in Cleveland but as long as he can get first-downs, then the Browns will be fine.
We can’t forget D’Ernest Johnson, Andy Janovich, or Johnny Stanton. Johnson was able to provide some impressive runs in relief of Hunt, while Janovich showed fullbacks are far from dead. Stanton hasn’t gotten a crack yet, but he’s athletic, big, and versatile and if called up to do some sort of H-Back role, the Browns may find themselves with yet another weapon.
Quarterback
Yup. Baker Mayfield has had two great years and one down year so far. It’s only three years, but it’s pretty clear the Browns see Mayfield as their starter going forward. After all, look at Sam Darnold and Josh Rosen. Both men have already made new teams home. If Mayfield was bad, he wouldn’t still be a Browns’ player. The idea that Mayfield isn’t the team’s starter for the foreseeable future is laughable. He clearly is.
He led the team to the playoffs in 2020 and did so in some of the worst games, weather-wise, that Cleveland has ever seen. Not just that, but he did so with a rotation of injuries to his offensive line, a crop of receivers that couldn’t stay healthy, and a deadly virus that caused several of his teammates to sit out the year.
All while on his fourth head coach and his third offensive system.
He gets constant grief from those in the media yet all he does is deliver. Yes, the 2019 season was marred by bad coaching but Mayfield still had a good-ish year, as far as former Browns quarterbacks are concerned. One could argue that his 2019 season was still a Top 25 season in franchise history here in Cleveland.
Not exactly the most ringing endorsement but the point stands; the Browns have had far worse than Mayfield in 2019.
As far as the backups go, not putting a lot of stock in Case Keenum isn’t a bad thing. He’s had just one good season in his entire career. He couldn’t do the same things Mayfield can, and has survived in the league as long as he has due to his ability to avoid too many costly turnovers. He can’t win you games like Mayfield can but he can make sure you don’t lose any.
If Mayfield gets hurt or is forced to miss time for some reason, Keenum can at least navigate you through games. You won’t have any impressive outings like Mayfield had in the home matchup against Baltimore but he might be able to do just enough to get you past a team, as long as you rush the ball like madmen.