The 2024 NFL season is winding down as the Cleveland Browns are playing in their final three games of the season. The team goes on the road to face the Cincinnati Bengals, come back home to face the Miami Dolphins, and then finish their disappointing season in Baltimore against the Ravens.
While the Browns don't have a lot of incentive to win the final games, these are valuable opportunities for management and the front office, assuming they come back next year, to evaluate some players on the roster for their potential role on the team next year. Let's take a look at three players that have the most to gain over the final games.
Dorian Thompson-Robinson
Thompson-Robinson is finishing up his second year on the team, leaving him with two years left on his rookie contract. He had some moments last year where he showed some promise.
However, this year hasn't been the same. Thompson-Robinson has only played in one game where he played meaningful snaps, the game where Deshaun Watson tore his Achilles. His stats left a lot to be desired in the game, completing only 45% of his passes for 82 yards.
With so many questions about who the quarterback will be next season, the team needs to decide if he can be the backup or if they need to completely overhaul the quarterback room. The team already knows what they have in Jameis Winston, a veteran quarterback that is capable of big plays but also prone to turnovers.
The team needs to start him instead of Winston to help figure this out if Thompson-Robinson has a role on the team in 2025.
Pierre Strong Jr.
Fan favorite and star running back Nick Chubb suffered another season ending injury, breaking his foot in game against the Kansas City Chiefs. The Browns have to be evaluating what the running back room will look like next year, especially in what is considered a deep running back class in the 2025 NFL Draft.
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The team knows what they have in Jerome Ford, a running back who is capable of the big plays but is working on being more consistent. For instance, last week Ford finished the game with seven carries for 84 yards, but 62 of them came on one play, meaning he only got 22 yards on his other six carries. This means the team might want a better look at backup running back Pierre Strong Jr.
Strong has not received very much playing time this year, with most of his playing time coming on special teams. In his limited role, he has shown that he is capable of catching the ball effectively out of the backfield with only one drop compared to nine catches.
It would be nice to see how Strong does as a lead back where he gets the bulk of the carriers to see what kind of role he could have on the team next year.
Jamari Thrash
The Browns are primed to upgrade their wide receiver room this offseason. It seems they are always interested in big name receivers. Cleveland got Jerry Jeudy this past offseason and may look to go after a receiver such as Tee Higgins this offseason.
If they don't land a big name player, they could look to spend a high draft pick on one, like Luther Burden III. Elijah Moore is likely to move on in free agency too.
Because of this, it would be a great time to see what they have with their prospects already on the team. Jamari Thrash is an intriguing prospect to keep an eye on. He showed a lot of promise at the college level until he played through a broken hand. He has a chance to show that he can handle an increased role next year, even in what will likely be a dramatically different looking wide receiver room.