The Cleveland Browns have, shockingly a Top 20 linebacker according to PFF

The Cleveland Browns aren’t a team you’d think would have a near-elite linebacker but they do.

The Cleveland Browns are in the midst of a most important offseason, as they try to develop the team into a real Super Bowl contender. For any team to become a Super Bowl contender, let alone a winner, they have to have elite, or near-elite talent to do so. And the Browns have talent like that.

Elite guys like Myles Garrett, Nick Chubb, and Joel Bitonio, with near-elite guys like making up the Wyatt Telleres, Denzel Wards, David Njoku, and Amari Coopers’. But while those guys are all elite or just about, the one name I didn’t expect to hear being considered a top-tier guy at his position was Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah

But according to Pro Football Focus, Owusu-Koramoah is in fact a top-tier linebacker;

"17. Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, Cleveland BrownsOwusu-Koramoah has shown flashes of really good second-level play. In 2021, he was a solid run defender. This past season, he was even better in coverage. 2023 could be the year he really puts it all together."

Is Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah a near-elite-level linebacker?

While I applaud the Browns getting some of their better representatives time to shine, I don’t agree that Owusu-Koramoah is a near-elite linebacker, as he has some massive holes in his game, namely against the run. His 2022 season was not very good when it came to stopping the run, though his 2021 season was. So which version of Owusu-Koramoah is he really? Is he the solid-run stopper we saw as a rookie or is he the guy who couldn’t shed blocks and got gobbled up?

I’d say somewhere in between. He can’t shed lead blockers, but he can stick a tackle. That’s something that needs to be said. 20 years ago Owusu-Koramoah would’ve been a safety due to his size, and maybe that’s the answer for his inconsistent first two years in the NFL.

Maybe moving him to safety, and keeping him away from lead blockers is the way to unlock his true potential. He certainly has the athleticism and intelligence to change positions, so why not give it a shot? It’s not like the Browns are loaded at either position that they can’t experiment a bit.

• Published on 06/26/2023 at 22:30 PM
• Last updated at 06/26/2023 at 22:30 PM