This season for the Cleveland Browns was a complete wash. Forgettable, miserable, and painful to watch at times, Cleveland put up little resistance throughout their 3-13 year (so far), and it's clear that major changes have to made to their offense headed into 2025.
However, on the other side of the ball, the Browns looked like they did in 2023. Maybe not as dominant - they fell in several defensive metrics compared to their electric season last year - but the pressure and ability to stop momentum was clearly there against most teams in 2024.
Two specific players really embodied that 2023 season going into this one, and made cases for All-Pro selections as well as appearances at the Pro Bowl this year: Denzel Ward and Myles Garrett.
Browns record shouldn't keep Garrett and Ward out of Pro Bowl or All-Pro conversation
Garrett has a more noticeable case to make both an All-Pro and Pro Bowl team for a fifth time in his career. Firstly, he is the first NFL player to ever record four straight seasons of 14 or more sacks, with his 13th and 14th coming in Week 17 against the Miami Dolphins. He's first in the league in sacks, and he's had 79 pressures total in 2024 - first in the league.
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Despite the losing record for Cleveland, Garrett has never even attempted to take it easy on the field or on the line. He's been relentless all season despite starting off slow due to injuries to his lower body. Had he been healthy, there's no telling what sort of further damage he'd have been doing to opposing quarterbacks.
As for Ward, the 2018 first round pick has had much quieter success with Cleveland - but success nonetheless. His 19 passes defended are first in the league, a metric he's led the league in for most of the season. He's also held opposing receivers to just a 50 percent completion rate when defended by him, which is good for third in the league.
Ward might have stiff competition. Names like Patrick Surtain II, Trent McDuffie, and Cooper DeJean all come to mind when thinking of elite cornerbacks from 2024. But, Ward's been just as elite - he just hasn't had many takeaways, which might garnish some of his scoring heading into the voting for All-Pro and Pro Bowl teams.
Ward, otherwise known as The Warden, does deserve at least second or third team honors when it comes to All-Pro voting. His leadership on the defense and with the secondary has been just as important as Garrett's leadership on the defensive line.
3-13 is a big hit to both of their arguments for making these teams, but if we're looking purely at the strengths of this Browns team, these two are atop the list.