The Cleveland Browns have signed Rodney McLeod but will he really be a difference maker?
The Cleveland Browns brought in safety and famed veteran leader Rodney McLeod, who has spent time before with Browns’ defensive coordinator, Jim Schwartz. McLeod, who has spent 11 seasons in the NFL so far, spent five seasons with Schwartz in Philadelphia, where as a member of the Eagles, McLeod helped the team win a Super Bowl.
Throughout his career, experts have asked constantly if McLeod is underrated. Surely for the fans of the Eagles, they believed he deserved far more in the realm of respect and accolades than he ever got. Despite his reputation, McLeod was and never has received any sort of post-season award.
His arrival with the Browns is seen by many in the fanbase as a “big deal”. And to a degree, it is. McLeod gives the defense a veteran leader, with winning experience that former teammates like Jalen Hurtz rave about.
But, as an on-field player, is he a top guy that can remake a defense? Some believe he is, citing his PFF grade in 2022 as a member of the Colts as a sign that he’s a “Top 10 safety”. That’s not really true, however. When we talk about a player being a “top 10 guy”, what we’re really saying is “Would you take at least 10 other guys ahead of X-player.”
Would you really not take 10 other safeties in the league over McLeod? CBS Sports doesn’t have McLeod in their Top 20, the Next Gen Analytic folks at NFL.com don’t have him ranked at all. Pro Football Network has him 25th.
PFF graded out his 2022 season pretty high. So high he falls in their Top 10. But that doesn’t mean he’s a Top 10 talent, that means that he had a Top 10 season. A notable point to remember. Being used well, and being talented are different things.
What does PFF say about Rodney McLeod historically?
So, the minute fans see something positive about a guy, they leap at it and hold it as fact, despite there being layers to these conversations. So if you don’t care about Pro Football Network, CBS Sports, or NFL.com because they don’t tell you what you want to hear, let’s look at PFF’s scores on McLeod.
First, let’s keep some things in mind. From 2012 to 2015, he played for the St. Louis Rams. From 2016 to 2021, he played for the Eagles, but Schwartz left after 2020. In 2022 he played for the Indianapolis Colts.
So with that said, let’s look at how PFF has graded him, specifically as a member of the Eagles under Schwartz.
- 2012: NL OVR/NL RDEF/ NL PRUSH/ NL COV
- 2013: 53.3 OVR/49.2 RDEF/ 44.0 PRUSH/ 54.7 COV
- 2014: 67.1 OVR/ 59.0 RDEF/ 36.1 PRUSH/ 71.2 COV
- 2015: 74.9 OVR/ 85.0 RDEF/ 49.9 PRUSH/ 71.3 COV
- 2016: 71.6 OVR/ 69.3 RDEF/ 90.4 PRUSH/ 70.1 COV
- 2017: 74.0 OVR/ 60.6 RDEF/ 60.9 PRUSH/ 77.4 COV
- 2018: 75.8 OVR/ 52.1 RDEF/ 53.7 PRUSH/ 78.2 COV
- 2019: 65.9 OVR/ 52.4 RDEF/ 64.7 PRUSH/ 70.6 COV
- 2020: 70.8 OVR/ 57.1 RDEF/ 54.7 PRUSH/ 77.3 COV
- 2021: 63.7 OVR/ 75.3 RDEF/ 57.6 PRUSH/ 58.3 COV
- 2022: 80.1 OVR/ 66.8 RDEF/ 60.6 PRUSH/ 85.3 COV
What should also be noted in this also, is that he didn’t start every game as a Colt, and played a Cover 3 scheme, while Schwartz usually runs a Wide-9. So the emphasis on what McLeod will have to do is highly different from scheme to scheme. Running with Schwartz’s scheme, even when he was in the prime of his career, he was only ever an average safety.
So what’s more likely to happen in 2023, with a 33-year-old, going back to a scheme he didn’t excel in? Another Top 10 season? Seems unlikely.
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.