Browns: Andrew Berry ranked in bottom half of NFL general managers

Andrew Berry has been the general manager for the Cleveland Browns since 2020 and has been aggressive, but where does he rank amongst all 32 NFL GMs?

According to Rotoworld's Patrick Daugherty, Berry is the 18th-ranked general manager in the NFL. That puts him in the league's bottom half, but not by much.

Berry ranks behind fellow AFC North GMs Duke Tobin (Cincinnati, 5th) and Eric DeCosta (Baltimore, 11th), but ahead of Omar Khan (Pittsburgh, 24th). That is where some have these teams finishing in terms of division order at the end of the season.

Now, the question is, how fair is that ranking of Berry?

If this list is based solely on the 2023 offseason, then surely Berry deserves a little more credit than that. He went out and was in the mix with all the top free agents of this class, but never wavered from the end goal of strengthening this roster, mainly on the defensive side of the ball.

Cleveland was in on both Javon Hargrave and Dre'Mont Jones, but landed Dalvin Tomlinson instead, who will be a better fit than Jones. He wasn't done signing defensive line help as he inked EDGE rusher Ogbonnia Okoronkwo to a three-year deal. After also being in on the top safeties of this class, Berry signed Juan Thornhill, who is already becoming a fan favorite.

The busy offseason didn't stop there as Berry yet again utilized the trade route to further enhance this roster by acquiring wide receiver Elijah Moore from the Jets for a second-round pick and EDGE rusher Za'Darius Smith from the Vikings for a couple of Day 3 picks.

Smith will be paired opposite Myles Garrett, and the two can be a record-setting duo for the Browns in 2023.

Center Ethan Pocic, who was merely a depth signing last offseason, re-signed with the Browns, and he has been arguably Berry's best free agent move since coming to Cleveland.

Despite not having a first or second-round pick in this year's NFL Draft, Berry was able to add a ton of valuable assets, but ones that likely won't need to contribute much in 2023, but be molded into guys that can be here in the future.

That is one hell of an offseason, one which Berry and the Browns desperately needed to hit on. Of course, all of these moves, regardless of the side of the ball, will rely heavily on the play of Deshaun Watson. Daughtery states this in his write-up of Berry in his rankings, and while that is fair, it is also slightly misguided.

He, like many others, is basing this off the six games Watson played for the Browns in 2023 after serving an 11-game suspension, which also kept the star QB out of football for 700 days. That isn't really indicative of how he will play this season, especially with a complete offseason with the team.

Should 2023 take a turn for the worst in Cleveland, then there will be some serious conversations about the general manager and even head coach. Until that happens, there is no reason to think this team can compete with anyone, but it will ultimately come down to execution, more so by No. 4.

The Browns will not get respect for being paper champions until they go out on the field and earn it, so until that happens, don't overreact to what people are predicting for the team this upcoming season.