Another promising year bites the dust as the NFL draft becomes the focus
This weekend, the two-win Cleveland Browns got roasted by the three-win New Orleans Saints. After the contest, a convincing 35-14 defeat, “the season that wasn’t” began to take on a new direction: to see if Cleveland could obtain the number 1 overall pick in the 2025 NFL draft.
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During this year’s off-season, it was assumed that the Browns could build on their 11-game season from last year and clip off several good years with a roster that was built to win now. Right away in Week 1, it was apparent that football teams are built on paper which doesn’t always translate to the field.
Now, the Browns are 2-8-0. The playoffs aren’t going to happen. A last-place finish in the division is apparent, and at season’s end, many players will find new employment opportunities next year. A coach or three, the GM, and the front office could see new faces next year as well. It always happens when teams have high hopes, and then not just fail, but bomb miserably.
For the remainder of the schedule, will this roster play to win the remaining games? Of course. These men are professionals. They have pride in what they do, and most never give up regardless. They also know, that men who quit become unemployed men who quit.
The Browns will use lots of players that aren’t starters in the back half of the schedule. It is only right. These other guys sweat and work just like the first team guys do, and show up every day with a starting mentality. It only makes sense for the coaching staff to begin inserting athletes to gain valuable live game experience and begin that portion of their development. The coaches also need to know which players to retain for next year’s camp and who to allow to move along no matter who they are.
Can Browns fans expect to see OG Zak Zinter getting more snaps in Wyatt Teller’s place? Will Winston Reid replace guys like Devin Bush at linebacker? Will we see more Jamari Thrash in the offense or D’Anthony Bell supplanting Juan Thornhill at safety?
At this point, Cleveland has a very good shot at gaining the first overall pick in next year’s college draft. They have competition, though, from clubs that are in a dark place just like the Browns. Let’s take a look.
These are the updated current standings.
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#32. Jacksonville Jaguars (2-9-0)
The Jags became the league’s first nine-game loser simply because their bye week is next weekend. They do have plenty of games that are winnable left on their schedule including the Tennessee Titans (2-8-0) twice, the New York Jets (3-8-0), the Las Vegas Raiders (2-8-0), and the Indianapolis Colts (5-6-0). However, the franchise possesses one of the easiest strength of schedules (SOS) at .483.
Jacksonville’s defense is horrible as evidenced by their 52-6 beatdown to the Detroit Lions on Sunday. They have given up more points (316) than any team in the league and have one of the lowest-scoring offenses. Can’t score and can’t stop the other teams from scoring.
Like the Browns in training camp, Jacksonville looked great on paper and their owner came out publicly and stated he saw one of the best rosters in the league prior to Week 1. Instead, they could be picking at the top of the draft for the third time in five seasons.
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#31. Tennessee Titans (2-8-0)
At least the Titans are consistent. They lost three games, won a contest, then lost three straight, won a game, and are now on a two-game skid. Both wins were against bottom-third clubs.
The winnable games remaining include Jacksonville (2-9-0) twice, Cincinnati Bengals (4-7-0), and Indianapolis (5-6-0). Their SOS is .506.
The main issue for the Titans this season has been in collapse of the offensive line with a huge emphasis on right tackle. RB Derrick Henry made a timely exit with this team’s offensive front in shambles. This has ruined the receiver corps because the time to survey the field just hasn’t been there. So, WR DeAndre Hopkins’ exit was just as timely. QB play is also an issue, or is it not having time to throw with a minimal running attack?
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#30. Cleveland Browns (2-8-0)
The offensive line is quite a quandary this year for Cleveland. Two years ago it was ranked in the Top-3 with basically the same guys. What has happened? Early on it was that both offensive tackles remained out with several backup guys taking snaps instead. But now it is basically the same roster for this group yet the Browns lead the league in sacks allowed and every game whoever is installed at quarterback is constantly flushed from the pocket. Numerous injuries have taken both starters and backups and the loss of former O-Line Coach Bill Callahan has proven to be a huge mistake.
Their defense still makes plays, but the offense’s inability to sustain drives leaves this group on the field way too much. In the fourth quarter, most guys are spent. Special teams have also been a roller coaster this year.
An issue this season is the number of games that Cleveland has lost against really bad teams: Las Vegas, New York Football Giants, Bengals, and Saints. A look at the Browns’ remaining games does reveal some games they can win such as the Denver Broncos, a rematch with the Bengals, and the Miami Dolphins. Their SOS is .523 which means they have some really good teams left to play as well.
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#29. Las Vegas Raiders (2-8-0)
Like the Browns, one of their wins is against the Baltimore Ravens. Other than that, this team is a mess and is currently on a six-game losing streak.
Their biggest issue is that they don’t have a true NFL starting caliber quarterback and have inserted three guys who are considered backups. They lost their starting running back to free agency last year and the rushing attack is just plain horrendous. Already the Raiders have fired three offensive coaches.
This team is certainly on a total rebuild path. They have a .527 SOS with winnable games against the Broncos, Jaguars, and Saints. The top money is on this team to end the year as the league’s worst and then take a QB with the first overall pick.
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#28. New York Football Giants (2-8-0)
Another good contender for the worst record at season’s end, the Giants only average 15.4 points per game plus allow the most yards per rush (5.3) on defense. They are paying their quarterback to be a Top-10 guy but Daniel Jones isn’t getting it done. No running game to talk about despite allowing Saquan Barkley to walk and is now having a tremendous season elsewhere.
The Giants are also bad on special teams – so all areas are not doing well. They need several new faces along the offensive line in order to get this group in sync. If their coach doesn’t make it past Black Monday, expect Bill Belichick to interview in a place where he had his second-most success.
As they are in the middle of a five-game losing skid, the rest of the Giants schedule does not offer much as far as wins: Saints, Colts, and maybe the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. With the season the Dallas Cowboys are having, New York might just be able to take a win there as well. Their SOS is .529 which means a lot of talented teams are going to take advantage and continue to pile up the losses.
Who do you think ends up with the first overall selection in the upcoming NFL draft? Are you rooting for the Browns to lose out to get it?