Is new Cleveland Browns’ player Rodney McLeod really a difference maker?

Rodney McLeod will help the Cleveland Browns to an extent

None of this is to dismiss Rodney McLeod’s signing. He’s a good get for the Browns, especially if Grant Delpit struggles. That’s right, this “top 10” guy is going to come in as a backup to Delpit. Will he see action, start and probably help the team to some degree? Absolutely? Is he a Top 10 talent in the NFL at his position? No.

He brings with him some Pros and Cons, that fans really need to accept. On the pro side comes familiarity with the defense. Considering how many times schemes broke down under Joe Woods, due to players not knowing the material, having someone like McLeod is going to help ensure that communication breakdowns don’t happen.

Another pro is that he’s never been highly athletic. He ran a 4.6 40-yard dash coming out of college. He went undrafted because he didn’t have great measurables. Even if he’s closer to a 5.0 at this point in his life, he’s never been overly athletic, so he’s never relied on his athleticism. Unless his body breaks down, he’ll be able to continue playing well enough to justify a roster spot. We hope.

It’s also known that he’s a great leader, which will be huge for the Browns going forward in 2023. The defense needs more leaders, and he may be able to help him there.

But with the pros come the cons. He is getting older, and eventually, a player’s body just breaks down. McLeod has been an average starter for most of his career, and in Cleveland, he won’t even start off as a starter. Clearly, no one else saw him as a huge get, which is why he settled for a smaller contract at only one year.

Another con, or more so a concern, he played his best football historically away from Schwartz. Will he truly add a big enough impact to justify carrying him? Luckily the safety position is shallow, so he’ll easily make the team unless he has just fallen off completely.

Another issue is his historical struggles against the run with Schwartz. If he’s asked to play closer to the line of scrimmage, he could very easily get exposed by bigger, more aggressive running teams.

Lastly, he isn’t playing with the same crop of cornerbacks in Cleveland as he did in Indianapolis. While fans like to hold up Denzel Ward and Martin Emerson as this great duo, the fact is Emerson is a fine, but not a Pro Bowl-caliber cornerback (yet), and Denzel Ward is highly inconsistent as a top corner. That wasn’t the case for Stephon Gilmore, a future Hall of Famer and still one of the league’s best corners, or Isaiah Rodgers, who had a massive year for the Colts. Yes, the Browns’ corners are good, but they’re not as good as the Colts’ top two from 2022.

So if you’ve heard nothing else from this article here; McLeod will help this team, just don’t be surprised when he’s not an elite player for the Browns. He isn’t an elite player, but he’s a solid veteran leader who knows the defense. There’s incredible value in that, but that doesn’t make him an All-Pro.

So temper your expectations.