Browns stock report: Deshaun Watson rises while Denzel Ward falls
The Cleveland Browns suffered a bad defeat at the hands of the Steelers. Only a few players stood out, while several seem to be depreciating assets.
Once again, given the chance to do something nice for the Pittsburgh Steelers, the Cleveland Browns elected to do so, mailing in a weak second half to fall to the Steelers, 28-14. The Browns were dominated on both sides of the ball, giving up 148 yards on the ground, while mustering on 134 themselves. This should be impossible for a team that averaged 6.1 yards per carry compared to the Steelers averaging 4.0 yards per carry, but your Cleveland Browns found a way to make it happen.
After watching that game, it’s time to stop saying that Cleveland has an elite offensive line. The line is not elite just because people say it is. They have to back it up with production. In general, the team can run behind their best offensive linemen; however, pass protection depends a lot on how good your fifth-best blocker is. In the case of the Browns, we have to say that their weakest pass blocker, whoever he may be, is very ineffective. That has to be addressed in the offseason.
For the stock report this week, there were many more players whose stock went down than up. In fact, it was so hard to find something positive to say that we actually had to go outside the active roster.
Stock Up 3: Joshua Dobbs
Say what? Joshua Dobbs?
If Dobbs were a stock he would be trading right now on an international stock exchange. When last seen, he was quarterbacking the Tennessee Titans to an unsuccessful playoff bid, and nearly pulled it off. Were it not for a questionable officiating call, he would be in the playoffs. He has no contract for 2023, so the Browns have as much right to him as the Titans have.
Dobbs, let it be known, ticks off all the boxes. He has size, speed, a rocket arm, and was a fourth-round draft pick from the almighty SEC, where he had four strong years quarterbacking Jimmy Haslam’s Alma Mater, the University of Tennessee Vols.
He started 37 games in four seasons, compiling 7,138 yards and 53 touchdowns and adding 32 rushing touchdowns. He got stuck in Pittsburgh behind the likes of Ben Roethlisberger and Mason Rudolph and the late Dwayne Haskins, so he never got a chance to play. He’s very, very smart, like Bernie Kosar or Dr. Frank Ryan. Dobbs is a sure-enough rocket scientist, with a B.S. in Aerospace Engineering with a perfect 4.0-grade point average.
In case anyone is wondering, Jacoby Brissett isn’t going to sign up to be the backup quarterback, though he genuinely seems to have appreciated his time in the Dawg Pound, and we for sure loved him. So forget all about that, because he’s not looking to be a backup. He’s probably headed to someplace like Arizona where he can compete for a first-string job for at least part of the year, like this season.
Cleveland’s projected backup quarterback is Kellen Mond, recycled from the Minnesota Vikings. Both Mond and Dobbs have appreciated in value after spending a full training camp and most of the regular season with the team. The question is, did they keep the right one for the second string?
Mond is four years younger at age 24, but that should not be a consideration since the odometer mileage is close to zero for both players. Alternatively, will they make room for a third-string quarterback on the 53-player roster next season and sign both?
With Brissett likely gone, a strong offer should be made to Dobbs.