Browns should not give up on Anthony Schwartz

Some are urging the Cleveland Browns to cut Anthony Schwartz from the roster after a slow start in the preseason, but the Browns front office shouldn’t panic.

Many are calling for the Cleveland Browns to cut ties with wide receiver Anthony Schwartz after a very poor performance in the team’s opening preseason game against the Jacksonville Jaguars. Schwartz did have a very rough game against the Jaguars, dropping two passes from quarterback Deshaun Watson. This has become a common theme with Schwartz as at times he struggles to hold onto the ball.

Despite the slow start to his sophomore campaign, it’s still way too early for Cleveland to give up on the young wide receiver. Schwartz is a player that will thrive in the new Cleveland offensive scheme and a perfect receiver to put beside Watson.

His game is very similar to Will Fuller’s who had an incredible connection with Watson during their time together with the Houston Texans. It would be too soon to let Schwartz go from the team before he gets the chance to play alongside the team’s franchise quarterback.

However, it’s essential that Schwartz does everything he can to give Cleveland a reason to keep him on the team. Ian Wharton from Bleacher Report was quoted as saying:

"“Some people are better athletes in shorts than playmakers on the field. That’s been the case with Schwartz since his days at Auburn, where he showed off blazing speed but lacked the nuance to consistently be a force at receiver. After he dropped two perfect passes from Watson in the first preseason game, Cleveland Browns should close the curtain on this experiment”."

Schwartz did have a tough time holding onto the ball last season. He finished out his rookie year with a catch percentage of just 43.5. This is very low and far worse than the league average. For reference, Amari Cooper has a career catch percentage of 63.2 and during his time with Cleveland, Odell Beckham Jr. had a catch percentage of 54.3.

It’s clear that holding onto the ball is one of the weakest points in Schwart’s game. However, it’s still something that he has time to improve on. Once he gets the chance to play with the same quarterback for an extended amount of time and further adjusts to the NFL, he could develop into a perfect deep threat receiver for the Browns.

Schwartz possesses blazing speed that you simply can not teach. As he continues to become more comfortable in the NFL, his game will continue to improve.