Cleveland Browns: Adding receivers must be a top priority in 2018
The Cleveland Browns front office must focus on improving the wide receiver position in 2018 if the offense is going to get any better next year.
Cleveland Browns fans can’t stop talking about the quarterback position. But who can blame them?
The team has consistently whiffed on finding a franchise guy to the point where it seems like it will never happen. It appears John Dorsey will finally take a quarterback number one overall in 2018, but even if he does fans will still be waiting to see if the team sticks with the player for more than just one year, no matter how he performs.
Yet while quarterback will always be the top story, this team needs some wide receivers in 2018.
Right now, the Browns are carrying six receivers: Corey Coleman, Josh Gordon, Sammie Coates, Ricardo Louis, Rashard Higgins and Matt Hazel.
If you don’t know who Hazel is, this proves my point.
Out of those six, Ricardo Louis is first in receiving yards with 322. That puts him fourth on the team in that category, behind a running back and two tight ends.
Gordon is by far the most talented of the group but it is hard to trust him during the upcoming offseason. No one wants him to get in trouble, but the team must add some talent in case things go awry for the tenth time.
Coleman was supposed to be the top guy when he was drafted but his lack of production, although due to injuries, was another dark mark upon the draft record of Sashi Brown. And with the way new general managers always want their own players, don’t be surprised if Coleman is gone before next season. The same could be true for Coates, Higgins and Louis.
But that would only happen if Dorsey can bring in some legitimate talent at the position. Fans are sick of seeing players like Kenny Britt and Dwayne Bowe brought in to collect millions and be terrible, meaning it is about time the team targets a top receiver in the draft. They sure have the draft capital to do so.
A lot of drafting involves luck, but Dorsey needs to find at least one receiver who can be a factor and actually help whoever lines up at quarterback in 2018. For all the problems DeShone Kizer causes himself, it is fair to say he doesn’t have much to work with and often has to improvise when no one is open.
Next: Week 14 takeaways from the defense
Hopefully we can sit here one year from now and not go “who?” when looking at the receiving depth chart. I’m sure Matt Hazel is a nice guy, but it is beyond frustrating to have the Browns continue cycling through players at the receiver position every few weeks, every single year.