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3 players the Cleveland Browns cannot lose to injury in 2021

By Sam Penix

Oct 25, 2020; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Browns wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. (13) leaves the game with an apparent injury during the first quarter against the Cincinnati Bengals at Paul Brown Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Joseph Maiorana-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 25, 2020; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Browns wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. (13) leaves the game with an apparent injury during the first quarter against the Cincinnati Bengals at Paul Brown Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Joseph Maiorana-USA TODAY Sports /
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Cleveland Browns
Jun 16, 2021; Berea, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield (6) talks with head coach Kevin Stefanski during minicamp at the Cleveland Browns training facility. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports /

1. Baker Mayfield

Jon Gruden once asked Indianapolis Colts offensive coordinator Tom Moore why Peyton Manning’s backups were never given first-team reps in practice. Moore responded with “Fellas, if ’18’ goes down, we’re (expletive). And we don’t practice (expletive).”

That may be a bit harsh to the Jim Sorgis of the league, but it’s also an entirely valid point. Nick Foles did lead the Philadelphia Eagles to a championship after starter Carson Wentz suffered a torn ACL, but that was an exceedingly rare circumstance. The amount of teams that can succeed if their starting QB goes down is very small, practically zero. The Browns are no exception.

We saw Case Keenum attempt 10 passes against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 6, and that was 10 too many. Keenum has had a nice career, is a good veteran presence, and had a really good 2017 campaign, but if he has to take any meaningful snaps in 2020 for any extended period of time Cleveland will not be in a good spot. Keenum does not have the ability to drive the ball down the field as Mayfield does, and as such, the game plan would change significantly in the event of an injury.

Mayfield was great after Week 6 last season. His play was rivaled by only Mahomes, Tom Brady, and Aaron Rodgers. That’s good company to be in, and if the Browns aren’t getting that level of QB play, they will be capable of winning some games, but not beating the teams they’ll need to in order to win it all.

Next. How Baker Mayfield ranks among NFL QBs. dark

And that is a major reason why the front office has invested so much into the best offensive line in the NFL.

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