David Njoku and Jerry Jeudy were constantly on the look out for the red zone. Elijah Moore was back to make acrobatic catches on the sideline for Jameis Winston. But, the run game for the Cleveland Browns remained stagnant, and some explosions on offense didn't equate to a win against the Denver Broncos.
Still, it was a study in what could happen for the Browns if they continue to help Jeudy, Njoku, and even Cedric Tillman in 2025 reach higher ceilings on offense with a quarterback like Winston - one not afraid to sling it. It's a necessary evil, watching the Browns lose despite these great performances. But, Cleveland learned a ton from their Week 13 loss. What works, and what doesn't, with Winston under center and with Jeudy as the bonafide WR1.
We're assigning grades to the Browns' offense for their performance in Week 13, and taking into consideration how they can keep up those performances - or fix them - against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 14.
Receivers
Grade: A
Jeudy led the wide receiving room in Week 13 with 235 receiving yards and one touchdown. He was, in short, a revelation. He managed to leap from 30th in the league in receiving yards to 5th in just one game, showing how dominant he was against his former team. He broke several records, including the most receiving yards recorded against a player's former team in NFL history.
Read more: Jerry Jeudy's record-setting revenge game a silver lining for 3-9 Browns
Moore was excellent as well, continuing to improve after a slow start to the season with Deshaun Watson at signal caller. His 111 receiving yards were a season high for him, and he helped to contribute to the 552 total yards recorded by the Browns overall in the game. David Njoku, who also had a touchdown, and Michael Woods II both helped out throughout the game for short yardage opportunities.
Everyone just seemed to be on the same page, and that's a good sign headed into 2025. Against the Steelers, expect to see more from the Browns' tight ends as they managed to cook against Pittsburgh's defense in Week 12.
Running backs
Grade: C+
Nick Chubb continues to confuse, and head coach Kevin Stefanski's inability to commit to either holding him out or giving him starting carries is making his return all the more muddled. He finished up with a receiving touchdown, but only 21 rushing yards. It was actually Jerome Ford who saw most of the carries in this game, recording 41 rushing yards with an average of 4.6 rushing yards per play.
Chubb will most likely get back to form with a better offensive line and with more reps. Going up against a Broncos defensive line is no joke for a running back, and Chubb isn't back to his All-Pro form from 2022. He may never get back to that explosiveness given the procedures and injuries he's endured, but it's worth continuing to get him carries and looks for the rest of the season regardless. Pittsburgh's defensive line, and especially T.J. Watt, are formidable. But, Chubb should still see more action if he's not hurt. Not getting different looks from the RB room is hurting the team.
Quarterback
Grade: C+
You likely read and heard one of two phrases often after Week 13: "Jameis Winston giveth and Jameis Winston taketh away," and, "never go full Jameis Winston."
Winston is fun to watch. Full stop. He doesn't care if he just threw a pick six - he's gonna go throw a deep ball again, anyway. And it'll likely hit his man, and likely will lead to a score. But then he'll get confident off of that rush - too confident, many would argue - and throw another pick six right after that. The ebbs and flows of Jameis Winston, defined in Week 13.
Cleveland would still prefer to see this level of quarterback play than whatever Watson was doing Weeks 1 through 7. That style - reserved, timid, and ultimately losing - was hurting not just the team, but the Browns' wide receivers and running backs who were doing everything in their power to make something out of nothing. So that's why despite the several pick-sixes from Winston, he still gets a passing grade. His 467 passing yards were still incredible to see. You just have to be okay with taking that along with the 171 passing yards he had for Denver.