Cleveland Browns: Was Austin Hooper signing a mistake?

Austin Hooper hasn’t been up to snuff in first season with Cleveland Browns

When the Cleveland Browns made Austin Hooper the highest-paid tight end in NFL history back in March of 2020, there was plenty of excitement around the signing. Hooper had made two consecutive Pro Bowls with the Atlanta Falcons, catching over 80 percent of his targets and dropping just two percent of them.

Hooper wasn’t the athletic separator that George Kittle and Travis Kelce are, but he was productive and reliable. Sure, the Browns probably overpaid a bit for him, but they had gotten themselves an all-around TE who was dependable first and foremost.

Throughout his football career, quarterback Baker Mayfield has loved throwing to his TEs, and with the offensive scheme that new head coach Kevin Stefanski was set to implement, it made sense to invest in the position. When Hooper and Mayfield got together to build chemistry over the pandemic offseason, the excitement increased.

Unfortunately, things have not gone according to plan, and Hooper did not live up to expectations during his first season in Cleveland. Hooper’s targets have, as expected, decreased, and he missed three games due to appendicitis and a neck injury,

When he’s been on the field, Hooper has been charged with seven drops on 76 targets (9.2%), and there were plenty more passes that he should have hauled in, but didn’t. Hooper was paid to make difficult catches, but he’s not doing that. His blocking isn’t overly impressive either, with David Njoku, who had drawn the ire of fans for his lack of expertise in that area, lapping him this season.

Njoku doesn’t have the targets that Hooper has, but he’s a significantly better athlete that gets open more and blocks much better. He also has just two drops on the year, both of which came in rainy Cleveland weather.

No one should write off Hooper after one season, and he will be in Cleveland for the duration of his contract. The deal is backloaded and has a significant amount of guaranteed money each year. Hooper made just $4 million this season, while his cap hit will be $8.25 million in 2021 and then $13.25 million in 2022 and 2023.

Had Hooper continued his level of play from Atlanta and the NFL salary cap continued its increase, Hooper’s contract would have looked pretty good in a few seasons. But as it stands now, he’s getting paid handsomely to be the second-best TE on the team.

Perhaps Hooper will rebound in 2021 and regain his Pro Bowl form. The Browns will need him to if they wish to take their offense to the next level.