4 Former Cleveland Browns players who could return in 2020
By Mitch Zoloty
Wide Receiver Travis Benjamin (2012-2015)
The former Browns fourth-round pick Travis Benjamin left the Browns in free agency after the 2015 NFL season to join the then San Diego Chargers. After spending four seasons with the Chargers, it has been reported that he will be let go by the franchise. His career with the Chargers was very similar to his tenure with the Browns, although they did not have him return punts nearly as much as the Browns did.
Now that he will be a free agent once again for the first time since he left Cleveland, a return makes too much sense for me not to mention. Travis Benjamin was a good returner for the Browns, and has scored four touchdowns on his 109 career punts returned, three of those being for the Browns. The team is in need of someone to step into this role, and Benjamin would be a good fit.
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He would also be able to be a speedy deep threat for the team’s receiver core. Filling the WR3 role left behind Rashard Higgins if he walks in free agency, or even coming in to be the fourth wide receiver on the depth chart, Benjamin would provide good value in that room.
Benjamin would probably also sign for a cheaper contract, as he has missed some games due to injury and is thirty years old. During his first tenure with the Browns, he proved to be a great pick for the team in the 4th round, even finishing 34 yards short of a 1,000-yard receiving season in 2015.
His production has dwindled during his time with the Chargers, and he finished last season on IR for the ball club. Benjamin is at the age now where his focus should be less on producing big numbers and getting paid and more on finding himself a place where he can win a championship ring.
Throughout his career, he has averaged 15.1 yards per catch, so bringing him in as a change of pace receiver to stretch the field for the Browns would be beneficial to both Baker Mayfield and Nick Chubb. When Odell Beckham Jr and Jarvis Landry need a breath, Benjamin would be able to step in to keep the safeties from crowding the box, as defenses know he can take the top off of any secondary with his speed. Benjamin would be a valuable asset to a very top-heavy wide receiver room for the Browns.