The Cleveland Browns preseason Power Ranking placement is low but accurate

The Cleveland Browns didn’t get a great preseason Power Ranking

The Cleveland Browns came into 2023 riding two straight losing seasons and a massive change was needed for this team to compete. The Browns haven’t added a major S-tier type of player during the 2023 offseason but did add some quality guys who should be able to help bolster the team’s weakest areas.

While they’re not done by any means, the team did upgrade portions of their defensive line and a spot in the secondary, while also adding depth to a few other spots. It hasn’t been the sexiest of offseasons but it’s been a productive one.

Sports Illustrated posted their early preseason Power Rankings and placed the Browns at No. 17, crediting them with the signings of Dalvin Tomlinson and Ogbonnia Okoronkwo, with writer Conor Orr saying;

"As we predicted before free agency, the Browns went big-game hunting at the defensive line position as a favor to Myles Garrett. While I thought Sheldon Rankins would have been a nice, cost-controlled piece there, they went for a bigger swing: Dalvin Tomlinson. There’s little doubt the Browns are going to be a tough football team in 2023, assuming their offensive line and running backs can hold up. Ogbonnia Okoronkwo will break out in this scheme, and Juan Thornhill should help Band-Aid a secondary that needed more at the safety spot."

The Cleveland Browns still have work to do

The Browns are on the bottom half of the list, and that’s fair considering all of the turmoil that the team has gone through over the last two seasons. The team has a lot of holes still to fill, including the other safety spot, possibly another linebacker, and dept at the offensive line.

They’ve mostly filled the starter spots, so that’s good, making the draft less necessary, but the team didn’t fill every spot with high-quality guys, so there’s a good chance that these additions don’t live up to the hype.

It should also be noted, that the Power Rankings came in before the Elijah Moore trade and the re-signing of Anthony Walker. Both moves should help bolster the Browns in the next round of evaluations.