5 indicators of a successful season for the Browns in 2022

The Cleveland Browns should be able to have a successful 2022 season if they are focused on these key indicators as a team

The good news this season for the Cleveland Browns is that they have a very talented roster of players. While that’s not necessarily different news from recent years, they have only made it into the playoffs once in the last four seasons. That’s a troubling pattern that hopefully can correct itself in 2022.

They may not have their new franchise quarterback Deshaun Watson available to them either this season so that will make a successful season a bit more difficult to determine, but with this squad returning numerous veterans, there will be no more excuses for them not to win ball games.

Let’s discuss now several key indicators that will go a long way in determining how this season plays out.

5 big indicators of a successful season for the Browns in 2022

No. 5 big indicator: The Browns run game has a big season

During the 2020 campaign, the spectacular duo of Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt had a season to remember. They’ve had two other years where they have been together but hadn’t produced as much.

In 2019 Hunt didn’t start playing until the halfway mark of the season because he was coming off a suspension and last year Hunt was injured for nine games and Chubb also missed some games as well to health concerns and Covid.

So now they are both healthy and prepping for a big year again. That upbeat feeling took a bit of a hit over this weekend as news came out that Hunt has been sitting out the last few practices in hopes of negotiating an extended contract with the team because he wants to stay long-term. The Browns, however, may have other ideas down the line as they just drafted new running back Jerome Ford, from Cincinnati and also have third-year back D’Ernest Johnson returning — and Hunt has since asked to be traded.

Chubb and Hunt have done some good things together and if they still are together going into Week 1 then the team has a lot to look forward to. In 2020 Chubb went for 1,067 yards on the ground in only 12 games. Hunt, that same year went for 841 yards on the ground and caught 38 passes for 304 yards. They combined for 23 touchdowns in 2020.

They’re such a dangerous pairing in the backfield and Cleveland will continue to expose poor defenses this season by using these two players wisely.

Back in 2019, Chubb ran for 1,494 yards but couldn’t hold the NFL rushing crown at the end. Chubb won’t necessarily need to win a rushing title this year or hit a magic number of yards gained or touchdowns scored but he will need to continue to produce on the field.

One additional indicator for the two backs is if they get both involved in the passing game more, especially Chubb. He had 36 pass receptions in his best career season of 2019. If he could get back to that type of number, then he’d be helping the team even more.

No. 4 big indicator: Amari Cooper has one of his best career seasons

Amari Cooper is an outstanding wide receiver and is considered by many to be Cleveland’s first legitimate No. 1 wide receiver since Josh Gordon was here. Yes, the Browns had Jarvis Landry and Odell Beckham Jr. most recently in town but neither was a No.1 guy on their own during their tenure.

Now Cooper is here, and all eyes and high expectations will rest on his shoulders to produce early and often. If he can continue putting up 1000-yard seasons, then the team will be in good shape. He’s never scored more than eight touchdowns in a single year, so I’d like to see him get above that mark then it would be an even better indication that the team was winning.

Over his career, Cooper has had some monumental performances and those types of games would be wonderful for the Browns fans to witness this season. In the past, he’s had multiple games receiving over 100 yards while playing for the Oakland Raiders and most recently the Dallas Cowboys.

While a Raider he went for 210 yards on 11 eleven receptions that included two touchdowns in one game. When he went to play for the Cowboys, he added two more games of clearing 200 yards.

There will be enormous pressure on Cooper to continue to provide big numbers and big moments to help this offense out this season, but he also has the skill set and steady demeanor to handle this.

No. 3 big indicator: Offensive line returns to form

Cleveland’s offensive line has been the strength of this team over the past several years, but last season was a real test as the line struggled a lot mainly due to key players being sidetracked with various injuries.

This season they’ve got a couple of those players healthy again including Jedrick Wills and Jack Conklin. These players along with their teammates will need to rise up to lead this offense once again.

The line was poor in keeping their quarterback upright a year ago. Some of that fault belongs to quarterback Baker Mayfield who seemed to regress in making quick decisions and would find himself in trouble in the backfield because of that. The linemen can only protect their quarterback for so long.

With Watson joining the club and a couple of other veteran backups like Jacoby Brissett on the team now, hopefully, both quarterback and linemen can be on the same page in protection and quicker play. Future Hall of Famer Joe Thomas has even gotten into the act of helping his former team by giving the current group of linemen a few pointers while at training camp.

The offensive line has been elite at times in helping the team’s excellent run game succeed in the past. With the number of injuries on the line from a year ago, they had a hard time maintaining that type of consistency and the run game struggled at key moments.

With Wills and Conklin back and a renewed focus on getting better, I think the offensive line will be a big indicator of the Browns success we see this year.

No. 2 big indicator: A top-ranked defense

The Cleveland defense got better last season, especially in the second half of the year. Defensive coordinator Joe Woods was criticized early on, but his players started getting a better grasp of the defensive play calling.

Now the team has another offseason to work out the kinks. One of the leaders on the defense, safety John Johnson III, recently shared how the team seems be communicating much better in this training camp and that could mean big things for the defense as well as the offense.

This defense was already talented, but this offseason they focused on adding depth. They drafted cornerback Martin Emerson in the third round out of Mississippi State and so far, indications are that he’s done well at training camp and making a name for himself. He could even land a job in the nickel defense.

But it won’t be easy for him to beat out AJ Green who’s filled in at a moment’s notice in the past and is also off to a good start at camp.

The other three cornerbacks including Greg Newsome, Greedy Williams, and Denzel Ward all will likely be starting regularly and locking down their opponents.

Then you move to the line and you’ve got veteran powerhouses in Myles Garrett and Jadeveon Clowney bookending this group. You add in defensive tackles Jordan Elliott and rookie Perrion Winfrey, and you are starting to solidify a strong and talented squad.

Can Garrett break his own team record of 16 sacks from last season? Will Clowney continue his resurgence of a career and cross the 10 sacks mark this season? I expect we likely will see these types of achievements this season.

The linebackers got better too last season with the addition of Jeremiah- Owusu Koramoah out of Notre Dame. His quickness and knack for tracking the ball are some of the best on the team.

With this emerging top-ranked defense, there could be huge dividends paid out and that would get the Browns one step closer to the final big indicator the team had a successful 2022 season.

No. 1 big indicator: Browns return to playoffs

I’m not predicting a Super Bowl appearance yet for the Browns this season, but I do believe that a return to the playoffs, after getting there in 2020 would be a strong indicator that this team was successful.

While they’re returning many players that have been here over the last several years including Nick Chubb, Denzel Ward, and Myles Garrett, they also have many new faces on the squad and that will take time to develop and gel.

Their biggest new face is Deshaun Watson and while he is the team’s future franchise quarterback, he may still have to sit out a majority of the season because of a suspension pending for some off-the-field issues.

With that being the backdrop to this upcoming season, it will take all three units working together to bring this last indicator to life. There’s certainly enough talent on this team like there has been in past seasons.

The focus on communication and working together will go a long way to deciding how this upcoming season plays out.

During Kevin Stefanski’s inaugural season as head coach, Cleveland made the playoffs and the team message all year was to play one game at a time, staying focused week to week. We’ve heard that message since, but it wasn’t as prevalent a year ago as the season went south quickly.

I’ve heard that type of focused message again from coaches and players in this training camp. Hopefully, that will carry into the regular season, and we’ll all be celebrating the Browns back in the playoffs.