ESPN ranks Cleveland Browns offensive arsenal 3rd best in NFL

ESPN’s Bill Barnwell ranked all 32 offenses in the NFL and the Cleveland Browns came in at third overall, well ahead of their AFC North counterparts

ESPN analyst Bill Barnwell recently released his annual offensive arsenal power rankings and was very kind to the Cleveland Browns. After placing their offense at No. 17 last season, and 30 the prior year, Barnwell has the Browns arsenal ranked third overall — behind only the Kansas City Chiefs and Los Angeles Rams.

It’s a huge jump for the Browns, but it does make plenty of sense when you look at the moves they made. This year they added wideout Odell Beckham, Jr. and running back Kareem Hunt which came after already adding offensive stars last season in quarterback Baker Mayfield, running back Nick Chubb, and receiver Jarvis Landry.

While the offense as a whole impresses Barnwell, it was the wide receiver corps that he touted the most. According to him, the duo of OBJ and Landry could rival teams such as the Minnesota Vikings who have Stefon Diggs and Adam Thielen at their disposal.

"“It’s hard to believe that we’re only two years removed from a Browns receiving corps whose leading weapon was 395 yards of Seth DeValve. No duo is going to be more fun to watch than Odell Beckham Jr. and Jarvis Landry, who should challenge Diggs and Thielen as the league’s best wideout pairing. The only blemish here is Beckham’s injuries, as the three-time Pro Bowler has played just one 16-game season in five tries and missed 16 games over the past two seasons.” — Barnwell, ESPN"

From there, Barnwell then praises the Cleveland running game, saying that it gives them the edge over a team such as Minnesota. It also puts them well ahead of everyone else in the AFC North.

Looking at their divisional rivals, the Baltimore Ravens were the worst, finishing at 26th overall. The Cincinnati Bengals came in second in the North at 13th, which is oddly higher than the Pittsburgh Steelers who were 15th after being fourth and second the past two seasons respectively.

Should the Browns offense be able to click as many expect, they could wind up winning the North and ending the longest playoff drought in the NFL.