With the addition of Jim Schwartz, these four players stand to see vast improvements for the Cleveland Browns in 2023.
The Cleveland Browns have spent a lot of money on the defensive side of the ball the last few seasons, yet the group continues to underachieve. The trend the last two years is to be historically bad the first six games of the year, and then finally figured things out in the back half of the season and be respectable.
I struggle to believe that Joe Woods was truly the problem, but after so much disappointment he was collateral damage when relieved of his duties. To no surprise, he was quickly scooped up by the Saints as their defensive coordinator.
While Woods may not have been the underlying problem, I will admit I’m excited to see what his replacement, Jim Schwartz, can do with this unit. He has a certain arrogance about him that I think this locker room desperately needs.
Here are three Cleveland Browns that will benefit the most from his system.
Player No. 4 – Deshaun Watson
Even though the Browns defense was better in the back half of the regular season, they still were lackluster at times. Between the pressure of all the picks given up to trade for Deshaun Watson, and Browns fans having unrealistic expectations, the last six games of the year were not easy for Watson.
A full offseason will be the biggest factor for Watson's improvements in 2023 but having a defense that's disciplined and can get teams off the field on third down will be a huge benefit for him. There's no worse feeling in the NFL than stepping on the field and knowing you need to score every time you have the ball to make sure you even have a chance of winning.
Although he isn’t a player, Kevin Stefanski will also get a little relief calling plays if Schwartz is successful in resurrecting this defense.
Player No. 3 – Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah
After a dazzling rookie season, Jeremiah Owusu-Koramaoh (JOK) was less impressive for the Cleveland Browns in 2022. He had a nagging soft tissue issue that limited his athleticism which is his biggest strength on the field.
With Wood’s only utilizing two linebackers in a majority of sets, JOK was a tough fit on this defense given he was already undersized. I must admit I think he plays much bigger than he is, but there's no doubt he can get lost in the bodies at times.
Two reasons that Schwartz will help JOK return to form in 2022. One, there will be a third linebacker on the field in most situations and that extra body to cover (especially on running plays) will make it much easier for the undersized player to not get buried.
Two (and by far the biggest reason), Schwartz is going to demand that Andrew Berry fix the defensive tackle issue. Last year it was a revolving door of guys who weren’t disciplined which also makes it harder on a linebacker. Once there is a massive three-technique tackle who has gap discipline, JOK will be able to use his speed to run and make plays as we saw in 2021.
Some have started to write off JOK, but I believe he is in for a fantastic season in 2023 if he can stay healthy.
Player No. 2 – Myles Garrett
I think everyone will be surprised to see me have Myles Garrett as No. 2 on this list for the Cleveland Browns, but I’ll explain more on the next page. I’ve been critical that Garrett struggles to make timely plays, but he’s had 32 sacks in the last two seasons, it’s hard to say his production can skyrocket in a new system.
One of my biggest criticisms of Woods was his inability to get one on one looks for Garrett. It was always difficult to tell if Garrett was uncomfortable moving around, or if Woods just didn’t game plan around offensive sets.
Especially with Jadeveon Clowney having a tough season in 2022, it became easy to put a tight end on the side of Garrett and at times even have a running back help as well. The Browns were also so bad on the interior of the line that guards would consistently be double-teaming Garrett as well.
The first thing Schwartz needs to do is find a reliable secondary pass rusher to help loosen the attention on Garrett. I don’t think Alex Wright is quite ready for that role, so I would expect that to be addressed in free agency.
We know Schwartz doesn’t believe in consistently bringing pressure via the blitz, but moving Garrett around, walking linebackers up, and even bringing a safety blitz every once in a while, will slow the offensive line down just a beat to help Garrett get home even more.
Garrett tends to get held almost every single play, but if Schwartz can find a way to get him one on one looks even 10 snaps per game, Garrett could have a 20-plus sack season in 2023.
Player No. 1 – Denzel Ward
After having a monster second half of the 2021 season for the Cleveland Browns which earned him a five-year, $100 million contract extension, 2022 was a disappointing one for Denzel Ward. Not only did he have some busted coverages, but he also struggled to take accountability for the mistakes to the media which was a tough look for someone who was supposed to be a leader in this unit.
One area where Wood’s scheme didn’t mesh well was with the Browns corners. Both Greg Newsome and Ward thrive in man coverage and struggle to make tackles. Woods was consistently in zone and asked his corners to squeeze plays inside on run support which was consistently botched by both.
There's no doubt that Ward was frustrated by his performance last year, and I expect a huge comeback in 2023. Not only will he be motivated, but the Schwartz system which will allow him to be in man-to-man coverage on most snaps will benefit him greatly.
Schwartz runs an old-school scheme where discipline is key. You won’t see a ton of fancy alignments or exotic blitzes, but he will expect his players to know where they should be and what their jobs are on every single play.
With Schwartz calling plays, Ward could end up having another pro-bowl season, flirting with all-pro status.