3 Cleveland Browns who have been MIA through 4 games

Hooper struggles out of the gate

One of the first splash signings of general manager Andrew Berry was coveted free-agent tight-end Austin Hooper. This was a perfect fit for a Kevin Stefanski offense, and many experts thought this was a home run.

Hooper was on the steady incline with the Atlanta Falcons for the previous four seasons. As a rookie Hooper had 19 receptions for 271 yard and three touchdowns. In 2018 and 2019 Hooper was a pro-bowler, and last season he racked up 75 receptions for 787 yards ad six touchdowns.

Targets are somewhat limited in the Stefanski system, but a tight-end has always found his way to get his fair share of looks because of the play-action. All through training camp, the hype continued. Browns reporters shared the chemistry between Mayfield and Hooper was tremendous and he was constantly getting open during the scrimmage periods.

However, through four games Hooper has been limited to 12 receptions for a lousy 96 yards and one touchdown. Before the banter of “he’s a great blocker” starts, that was accounted for, and a big reason he is number three on the list and not number one.

Hooper has been a tremendous inline blocker for Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt, but I don’t think the Browns gave him a four-year $42 million contract to block. He’s held to a higher standard for being compensated so well.

It’s not time to panic, there is still plenty of time for Mayfield and Hooper to form a connection.  There were even flashes on Sunday vs. the Cowboys which is promising. Look for the connection to continue to improve, and fans should even be hopeful for a breakout next week vs. the Colts. However, at the moment this signing doesn’t look like one of Berry’s finest.