Cleveland Browns: 5 players with key roles for playoff push

3. LB Mack Wilson

Mack Wilson was a healthy scratch against the New York Giants because of poor performance over the past few weeks (or, more accurately, the season). He’d better have taken that benching to heart, because he’ll be counted on by necessity.

Starting MIKE B.J. Goodson tested positive for COVID-19, and will miss the Browns Week 17 matchup with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Jacob Phillips was identified as a close contact, and was inactive for the Jets game. Malcolm Smith has also been dealing with a hamstring issue. Wilson did have one of his better outings of 2020 against New York, but those have been few and far between.

Cleveland’s defense attempts to mitigate the effect that its linebackers have on the game, but that’s much easier said than done. Wilson missed multiple key tackles against the Baltimore Ravens, that, had they been made, could have swung the game in the Browns direction.

He’s been a net negative for the team, and that will absolutely have to change if they hope to pull off the victory in the biggest Browns game since 2002. This opportunity will also contribute to whether or not Wilson makes the roster in 2021, which is far from a guarantee. Wilson is an easy personality to root for, but he has yet to back up his talk with his play.