Cleveland’s pass catchers may not be a robust group, but are they really as bad as PFF’s ranking?
The Cleveland Browns rebuilt the quarterback room during the offseason, making a clean sweep of what was one of the worst groups of passers the league has seen in a long time.
But if the quartet of Joe Flacco, Kenny Pickett, Dillon Gabriel, and Shedeur Sanders has a chance at even playing at an acceptable level, they will need help from their wide receivers.
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That could be a problem, however, if the group plays as poorly as projected by Pro Football Focus. The analytics site ranked the league’s receiving groups from No. 1 to No. 32, and the Browns came in dead last:
The Browns’ team-wide 65.3 PFF receiving grade last season ranked second-worst in the NFL, and they did little to fix that heading into 2025. Jerry Jeudy led the way with a 74.9 PFF receiving grade, and tight end David Njoku added a passable 65.3 mark. Cedric Tillman and Jamari Thrash will have to really step up, and perhaps rookie running backs Quinshon Judkins and Dylan Sampson can help from the backfield, too.
Yikes!
While they may not be the second coming of Webster Slaughter, Reggie Langhorne, and Brian Brennan, the situation may not be as bad as PFF is projecting.
Related: Projecting Cleveland’s Week 1 wide receiver room
Last season, his first with the Browns, Jeudy posted the first 1,000-yard season of his five-year NFL career. And he did it while catching passes from that aforementioned horrible quarterback group.
Tillman’s career has gotten off to a slow start, but he was starting to find his groove last season before missing the final six games with a concussion. In a three-game stretch from Week 7 to Week 9, Tillman has 21 receptions for 255 yards and three touchdowns, so if he can stay healthy, Tillman has an opportunity to be a productive No. 2 wide receiver.
Wide receivers are not the only players who catch the ball, of course, and credit PFF for recognizing that tight end David Njoku is on the roster. Much like Tillman, if Njoku can stay healthy, he should be able to replicate his 2023 season, in which he had 81 receptions for 882 yards and six touchdowns.
It will also be interesting to see how much the running backs are involved in the passing game this fall, with rookies Dylan Sampson (40 receptions for 342 yards during his three seasons at Tennessee) and Quinshon Judkins (59 receptions for 442 yards during his three seasons split between Mississippi and Ohio State).
During the team’s recent minicamp, running backs coach Duce Staley talked about Sampson’s ability to play in the slot as the coaching staff is looking at “what we can do with Dylan as far as a receiver.”
Having a reliable pair of hands out of the backfield can be a quarterback’s best friend and can make a passing attack that much more effective.
There is a lot of projection about what the receivers can or can’t do on the Browns. And if you look at just the wide receivers, there is a pause for concern. But taking a bigger picture view, Cleveland’s passing attack may be better than people are giving it credit for.