After hiring a new head coach in Todd Monken, the Cleveland Browns had the luxury of hosting a bonus “veteran minicamp” back in April per the NFL’s offseason training rules. The Browns held theirs the week of the draft, literally concluding on the same day their franchise added first-round picks Spencer Fano and KC Concepcion to the team.
That April minicamp was voluntary, and one of the most notable players who skipped it was wide receiver Jerry Jeudy. It was certainly a curious decision for the team's No. 1 wideout to pass on Monken’s first passing camp, fresh off one of his least productive seasons as a pro. The Browns doubling down at wide receiver with Denzel Boston on Day 2 of the draft only made Jeudy’s absence look even worse.
To Jeudy’s credit, he’s been putting in the work with quarterbacks Deshaun Watson and Shedeur Sanders ever since. He fully attended the team’s voluntary spring OTAs. GM Andrew Berry called Jeudy the team’s “bell cow” during the draft, and how his role evolves in a group that now features Concepcion, Boston, and the ascending Isaiah Bond remains to be seen.
Moe Moton of Bleacher Report crafted an interesting pitch for Jeudy, and it has nothing to do with him getting traded this summer. Moton believes a move inside as the Browns’ primary slot receiver could lead to a bounce-back season in Cleveland’s new-look wide receiver room.
"As a collegian at Alabama, Jeudy lined up mostly in the slot and racked up over 1,100 receiving yards in back-to-back terms. The Browns should feature him in the same way this year,” Moton wrote. “In six campaigns as a pro, Jeudy has split time between the inside and outside receiver positions. Though aside from his 2024 Pro Bowl season, he's been mediocre at best with his receiving numbers yo-yoing from year to year. Perhaps a dedicated role out of the slot is best for his production.”
Jerry Jeudy's slot usage hit a career low in 2025
Moton's take is well worth exploring. Jeudy took an obvious step back in production last year, with drops and a poor connection with rookie quarterbacks Shedeur Sanders and Dillon Gabriel being the main factors.
To Moton’s point, he also took a noticeable step back in slot usage during that 2025 season. According to Pro Football Focus, Jeudy lined up in the slot on just 18.6 percent of his snaps, which was by far a career low. He hadn’t seen less than a 35-percent snap share in the slot since his rookie season with Denver in 2020.
The emergence of tight end Harold Fannin Jr., who lined up as a slot receiver on 41.4 percent of his snaps, per PFF, was an undeniable factor. Bond mixed in as a slot receiver as well, especially early in the season. But the fact that former head coach Kevin Stefanski never made a noticeable adjustment to get Jeudy going is why Browns fans were happy to see him depart for Atlanta this offseason.
The slot could be the key to Jerry Jeudy's bounce-back season
Monken projects as the kind of forward thinker who could make that change. Bond seemed to excel as more of a downfield boundary receiver later in the season, and Boston projects as a prototypical “X” receiver on the outside. Concepcion profiles as that Zay Flowers-esque flanker who should see snaps all over the formation.
What Cleveland has this year that it didn’t in 2025 is options. Given some of the complementary skill sets of the players currently on the roster, a primary slot role for Jeudy feels like a long shot. But something closer to his career average of 41.1 percent usage this year could make a world of difference for a player who should remain a focal point of the Browns’ passing attack in 2026.
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