They were one of the more disappointing teams in the league a year ago. Now the Cleveland Browns look to get back on the winning track.
It looked like the team that had struggled since its return to the NFL in 1999 had finally turned the corner. From 1999-2019, for a total of 21 seasons, the Cleveland Browns posted a winning record just twice and reached the playoffs on only one occasion. That was back in 2002 when the team squandered a big lead in the wild-card round at Pittsburgh.
Fast forward to 2020 and the team, with quarterback Baker Mayfield at the helm, came away with an 11-5 record and the team’s first winning season since 2007. Back in the playoffs for the first time since ‘02, the club went to Heinz field and humbled Mike Tomlin’s team, 48-37. It was the Browns’ first postseason win since 1994.
But Mayfield is now a member of the Carolina Panthers – who host Cleveland in Week 1 of the regular season. There have been other significant changes as well. So how will these three new additions impact Kevin Stefanski’s club this year?
Cleveland Browns top offseason pickup no. 3: WR David Bell (Purdue)
Jarvis Landry was released by the team this offseason and is now with the New Orleans Saints. Rashard Higgins signed a free-agent deal with the Carolina Panthers. And tight end Austin Hooper was cut loose by the club and latched on with the Tennessee Titans.
But keep an eye on former Purdue Boilermaker David Bell, the last of the club’s three third-round draft choices in April. He comes off a season in which he caught 93 passes for 1,286 yards and six scores in just 11 games.
Bell was slowed a bit by a foot injury earlier this summer. He didn’t play in the club’s preseason opener vs. the Jaguars. But he caught three passes for 46 yards in the club’s 21-20 home loss to the Eagles. Bell figures to make his share of plays this year – regardless of who is throwing him the football.
Cleveland Browns top offseason pickup no. 2: QB Jacoby Brissett (Miami Dolphins)
Eventually (barring additional issues), the team’s new starting quarterback is former Houston Texans star Deshaun Watson, although he won’t be eligible to play until Week 13 following an 11-game suspension to start the season. Cleveland gave up plenty in terms of draft capital and money to acquire his services. But he won’t first be available until Week 13.
But when Kevin Stefanski’s team takes the field on the opening Sunday of the 2022 campaign against the Panthers in Carolina, six-year pro Jacoby Brissett figures to be at the controls of his offense.
The Browns returned to the NFL in 1999 as an expansion team. And the former third-round pick of the New England Patriots (2016) will become Cleveland’s 33rd different starting quarterback in 24 seasons.
Brissett comes off a year in Miami in which he completed a career-best 62.7 percent of his throws. But he also finished with more turnovers (7) than touchdown passes (5) in the 11 total games (5 starts) he played. However, he joins a team with one of the league’s best ground attacks (4th in the NFL in 2021) and offensive lines. And he’s more than capable of keeping Stefanski’s team in contention until Watson is available.
1. Cleveland Browns top offseason pickup: WR Amari Cooper (Dallas Cowboys via trade)
Back to the wide receiving corps and this time the focus is on a much more experienced performer. And seven-year veteran Amari Cooper could be primed for a career year as he will be depended on greatly while the Browns’ revamped pass-catching corps is in the process of finding itself.
The former University of Alabama standout was the fourth overall pick in the 2015 NFL draft by the then-Oakland Raiders. And during his stay with the Silver and Black, Cooper put up solid numbers. In three-plus seasons with the club before being dealt to the Cowboys during the 2018 season (52 games), he totaled 225 receptions for 3,183 yards and 19 scores. He was named to the Pro Bowl in each of his first two NFL campaigns.
But his numbers were even better during his tenure in Dallas. In 56 outings with Jerry Jones’ franchise, Cooper racked up 292 catches for 3,893 yards while making 27 trips to the end zone. And he earned two more Pro Bowl invitations.
Now he’s a member of the Browns after being dealt to Cleveland. He will be a major asset to an offense that ranked 27th in the league this past season in passing yards per game.