JOK or no JOK, Browns 2nd round NFL draft pick Carson Schwesinger can fix the team’s problems on defense
The Cleveland Browns have a lot of issues and most of them in 2024 were on the offensive side of the ball. That didn’t stop GM Andrew Berry from selecting two defenders with the team’s first two selections. DT Mason Graham was considered by almost everyone among the top five prospects in the draft (top 3 for many).
It was the selection of LB Carson Schwesinger at the top of the second round of the 2025 NFL draft that really caused some surprise. Many believed the Browns would select a quarterback, offensive tackle, wide receiver or trade down with that pick. Schwesinger, given his position, wasn’t on the radar for many people.
Only once was Schwesinger selected in a mock draft (collected by Mock Draft Database) before the 4th round.
The hope is that Schwesinger will join Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah to give Cleveland one of the most dynamic linebacker pairings in the NFL. We will have to wait to find out the future of JOK, but Schwesinger will help with some of the problems on the defensive side of the ball with or without Owusu-Koramoah.
Pro Football Focus had the Browns as the worst tackling team in the NFL last year. FTN’s DVOA ranked Cleveland’s run defense in the middle of the pack (15th overall).
Over at Browns Film Breakdown, we see how Schwesinger can be greatly helpful with both of those areas. In an agreement with BFB, here is a segment of their breakdown of the Browns newest linebacker:
So many great pieces of information in the above video about how Schwesinger is able to make plays as a run defender. Notice how many times the UCLA Bruin is one-on-one with a running back and he gets his man on the ground.
Browns Film Breakdown is a subscriber-based site through Substrack. Their model allows for some of the material to be free for everyone, but most of the in-depth film room material is for subscribers only. To bring more film content to our DBN community, we will bring segments of material over from BFB and encourage our readers to check out the material on their site and subscribe if interested.
I will also be a regular guest on their podcast, as I was last week.
Watching the film breakdown of Schwesinger, do you think (along with the addition of Graham) the Browns have solved their run defense and tackling issues? How do you feel about Berry using the 33rd pick to take a linebacker? Any difference after seeing some of the film on him?
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