Cleveland Browns: 5 young players who must take a big leap forward in 2021

3. Jordan Elliott

Jordan Elliott was ranked as one of Pro Football Focus’s top 25 prospects in the 2020 NFL Draft, and the Browns got him in the third round, adding him to a weak defensive tackle room that became much weaker when Andrew Billings opted out. Elliott played a rotational role, and while he had some really nice moments, he typically struggled and failed to make much of an impact.

Despite his status as a third-round pick of this regime, Elliott’s roster spot is not guaranteed. The room lacks any proven talent other than Billings and Malik Jackson, but it does not lack talent. Elliott, Tommy Togiai, Marvin Wilson, and Malik McDowell are all fighting for spots, and while it is possible the team could keep all six guys, they carried only four DTs on the roster in 2020.

Elliott was a consistently disruptive player in 2019 at Missouri, and one of the best pass-rushers in the country. The Browns could really benefit from him showing some of that ability in 2021, because it doesn’t matter if he’s third or sixth on the depth chart; Elliott, and everyone else in the room, will play significant snaps because of how defensive coordinator Joe Woods rotates his linemen.