5 Browns on Thin Ice After Embarrassing Loss to Rams
By Randy Gurzi
2. Juan Thornhill, Safety
The Browns should probably stick to drafting safeties. They did well by adding Grant Delpit this way — and he's having a career year. But for whatever reason, signing them in free agency hasn't worked out.
One of the prime examples of this was John Johnson III who they signed away from the Los Angeles Rams in 2020. JJ3 wound up struggling for two years before being released. He was then replaced with Juan Thornhill who had just earned his second Super Bowl ring with the Kansas City Chiefs.
Thornhill has been fine overall but he's dealt with some nagging injuries and is prone to give up some big plays. Making matters worse, he was on the wrong end of a touchdown this week — which came right after JJ3 picked off Flacco. Johnson even took to social media to put the Browns on blast following the win.
John Johnson interception. Then Juan Thornhill gets picked on for the TD. The Browns safety luck is awful.
— Jake Burns (@jake_burns18) December 4, 2023
Thornhill is known for his ability in deep coverage and has also been able to create turnovers throughout his career. In Kansas City, he had eight picks in four seasons and also broke up 20 passes. So far in Cleveland, he has just one pass defense and has yet to record an interception.
At some point, he needs to turn it up a notch. Cleveland signed him in hopes of fixing their pass defense but so far, he hasn't been a major factor.