The Cleveland Browns have had a rough go of it the past two seasons. With 3-14 and 5-12 records to show for it, it's clear the team failed their fans in 2024 and 2025. Most of their failures can be traced back to the ill-fated decision to trade for quarterback Deshaun Watson. The butterfly effect of that one transaction — the lost draft picks, the wasted cap space, the sabotaged seasons — has led to one silver lining.
These abysmal seasons have allowed the Browns to load up their roster with blue-chip prospects and quality future draft choices, a welcome departure from the 2024 offseason when the Browns could realistically be considered the NFL's least talented roster. Mason Graham, Quinshon Judkins, Carson Schwesinger, and Harold Fannin Jr. each have the appearance of foundational pieces for the future.
Loaded with four draft picks inside the top 70, the Browns are set to add to that group in April's NFL Draft. With that in mind, Browns fans can take solace in the fact that NFL players around the league are taking notice.
Zion Johnson, the first outside free agent inked by the Browns in this year's free agency, echoed the sentiment in his introductory press conference.
"Looking at the team from the outside in, for me, it looked like a team on the rise. There’s a lot of pieces. The front office is very hell-bent on improving the offensive line, improving the team as a whole. My role was just to come in, play whatever position is needed, whether it is left or right, to help the team in any way necessary. But the draw was clear for me: I could see the potential with the talent on this team."
Hearing the Browns mentioned as a team on the rise will have Browns fans grinning from ear to ear after a few turbulent seasons that gave them very little to cheer about.
Zion Johnson already sees something different about the 2026 Browns
Zion Johnson joined the Browns on a three-year, $49.5 million contract with the expectation that he'd fill one of the starting guard spots along the offensive line. Still only 26 years old, Johnson gives the Browns a chance to bet on the upside the former first-round pick has displayed, even if he hasn't put it all together in his NFL career thus far.
With the obviously enormous caveat that the Browns have a Grand Canyon-sized hole at the game's most important position, it's evident that Andrew Berry and Co. are not punting on the season in 2026. There appears to be a concerted effort to build a rock-solid foundation, quarterback resolution notwithstanding.
It's one of the most encouraging signs from the Cleveland Browns in recent memory. The ill-fated tank jobs of 2016 and 2017 left the franchise with tangible evidence that fielding the worst possible roster will not suddenly make you a Super Bowl contender. The Football Gods have seemingly cursed the Browns for their (lack of) efforts ever since.
Consider it a lesson learned. The best way for the Browns to proceed is to build a foundation, giving their eventual quarterback of the future a fighting chance on a team with some talent. Perhaps with the upgraded cast surrounding the QB position, Shedeur Sanders takes a leap that solidifies his spot for the future.
Perhaps not, but at the very least, any QB who makes their way to Cleveland in 2027 will have a far better supporting cast than ghosts of Cleveland's past such as Tim Couch, Brady Quinn, and Brandon Weeden.