In a national ranking of the NFL's rosters, Pro Football Focus ranked the Browns dead last out of the 32 franchises. It is difficult to argue with the assessment, considering the Browns are coming off a dreadful season with little change in terms of huge additions to the roster.
Browns rank dead last in roster rankings - strengths & weaknesses
Max Chadwick and Dalton Wasserman went to work detailing the biggest strengths and weaknesses of the Browns' roster. The biggest strength shouldn't be a surprise, as it features the team's best player and what many would call the league's best defender.
" Myles Garrett continued to show why he’s the best edge defender in football, leading the position for the fourth straight season in PFF overall grade (92.3). Fellow edge defender Isaiah McGuire broke out in his second season with an 83.3 PFF overall grade, and Cleveland significantly upgraded its interior defensive line by selecting Mason Graham with the fifth-overall pick."Max Chadwick and Dalton Wasserman
While some might argue that the Browns' offensive line and cornerback groups have at least proven historically to be groups capable of excellence, the NFL is a "what have you done for me lately" league. The Browns' offensive line ranked 4th worst by PFF grade in 2024. The secondary also saw huge regression in play, PFF ranked Greg Newsome II 177th/222 CBs and Martin Emerson Jr. 194th.
The Browns' defense under Jim Schwartz is hoping that 2024 was just a mulligan year, and that 2025 will be up to the standard set in 2023 when they had the league's 13th-ranked defense.
As far as the biggest weakness, it's got to hurt an offensive head coach like Kevin Stefanski to hear that his entire unit is the team's weakness. Not the quarterbacks, not the receivers - all of them. No one's safe.
"The Browns' 2024 offense was hard to watch. The group ranked dead last in PFF grade (62.1) and EPA per play (-0.207). Cleveland still has no clear answer at quarterback, arguably the worst receiving corps in the league and an aging offensive line that earned the fourth-worst PFF grade in 2024 (59.8). It’s hard to get much worse."Max Chadwick and Dalton Wasserman
This damning assessment must mean that Stefanski's seat as the team's head coach is warm, if not piping hot. Once again, however, it's hard to argue with the assessment.
The team's quarterback situation is extremely fluid. Whether it's Joe Flacco, Kenny Pickett, Dillon Gabriel, or Shedeur Sanders, the Browns signal caller would be ranked near the bottom, if not dead last in the league, regardless of who it is. Now, that doesn't mean that one of the youngsters can't turn out to be the next Brock Purdy story of an overlooked prospect who takes the league by storm, but the odds are not in their favor.
Can Diontae Johnson be the x-factor for the offense?
The group of receivers has been a concern, but an under-the-radar signing was named the Browns' X-Factor for the 2025 season. Back in March, after the first wave of free agency, I broached the idea of Diontae Johnson joining the Browns. A player in desperate need of some image rehab after a tumultuous 2024 season and a team in desperate need of cheap, pass-catching talent.
It appeared to be a perfect match. The Browns' options outside of Jerry Jeudy have little in terms of experience and NFL production to their names. Johnson has had a 1,000-yard season, and he's been a Pro Bowler. It's proven that he could get it done at the NFL level. Now the Browns hope he can stay content and do it in their uniform.
Unlike some other receiving free agents that remain - including Amari Cooper, Keenan Allen, and Nelson Agholor - who are further along into their 30s, Diontae Johnson turns 29 in July. There's still plenty of tread on those tires, and a rebound from Johnson in 2025 can lead to a longer-term stay in Cleveland.
Rookie RBs provide reason for optimism
One spot the Browns have reason for optimism is the running back spot. While it stings to lose franchise icon Nick Chubb after an illustrious career, the Browns added a blue-chip talent in Quinshon Judkins.
"The second-round pick could be heavily relied on during his rookie year, with the Browns' passing game looking like the worst in football. Judkins earned a 95.2 career PFF rushing grade across three seasons at Ole Miss and Ohio State and could put up big numbers as a rookie."Max Chadwick and Dalton Wasserman
At this juncture, Judkins appears a safe bet to be the starting running back for the Browns in 2025. An additional reason for optimism is that the youngster already seems to be taking a leadership role with the team, stating in an interview with Gilberto Manzano of Sports Illustrated that he is coming to "change the organization."
For a team that will likely deal with some rough patches and uneven quarterback play - the opportunity for Judkins to hit the ground running is prominent. If his collegiate career was any indicator, he won't disappoint.