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Three Cleveland Browns players primed for bounce-back seasons

By Zane Harris

WESTFIELD, INDIANA - AUGUST 15: Odell Beckham Jr. #13 of the Cleveland Browns in action during the joint practice between the Cleveland Browns and the Indianapolis Colts at Grand Park on August 15, 2019 in Westfield, Indiana. (Photo by Justin Casterline/Getty Images)
WESTFIELD, INDIANA - AUGUST 15: Odell Beckham Jr. #13 of the Cleveland Browns in action during the joint practice between the Cleveland Browns and the Indianapolis Colts at Grand Park on August 15, 2019 in Westfield, Indiana. (Photo by Justin Casterline/Getty Images) /
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BEREA, OHIO – AUGUST 16: Odell Beckham Jr. #13 talks with Baker Mayfield #6 of the Cleveland Browns during training camp on August 16, 2020 at the Cleveland Browns training facility in Berea, Ohio. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images) /

2. Odell Beckham, Jr.

When the Browns Brought In Odell Beckham Jr. it was thought that he would be a key part in turning around the trajectory of the Browns. He must bounce back and be the Number one receiver for the Browns to show growth.

Wwhen looking at the deal that the Browns made to get Beckham Jr. in comparison to the deals that were made to send Antonio Brown to the Oakland Raiders or more recently the trade that sent Deandre Hopkins to the Arizona Cardinals, the Browns gave up a lot. Outside of the season in which Beckham Jr. sat out due to an injury in the 2017-2018 season, last year was statistically the worst season of Beckham Jr.’s career.

First, it was the first year of his career that he did not have Eli Manning throwing the ball to him. Say what you will about Eli, but he is one of the best quarterbacks in what has been deemed the golden age of quarterbacks and has a solid case of being a Hall of Famer. It was said that he needed hip surgery and that is why he struggled so much this year.

This would explain a lot as it did seem at times that Beckham Jr. was a step slow which did lead to there being some issues on ball placement when it was coming to him and his struggle to create separation in comparison to earlier in his career. However, over the offseason, Beckham Jr. did have surgery on that hip and is supposed to be in the best shape of his life.

The Browns need Beckham Jr. to be the best that he can be because during his first season with the Browns with him being the number one receiver on the team he only had numbers of 1,035 yards on 74 receptions which were good for a career-low outside of the year he was injured, four touchdowns. Along with this, last season he had a drop percentage of 5.3 percent compared to his last year with the Giants in which he only had a drop percentage of just 3.2.

Cleveland needs Beckham Jr. to take a big step up from his first year with the team and his success will have direct correlation with Baker Mayfield’s. If OBJ can get his extra step of speed back and Mayfield can become the player that he was his first season, Beckham Jr. and Mayfield could be one of the best quarterback-receiver duos in the league.

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