Looking Towards Next Year: Path for the Browns To Make Super Bowl LVII

The Cleveland Browns are currently +4000 to win the Super Bowl next season and need to fix up a few things to sure up this roster. They have some great players scattered throughout the roster, but today we are going to dive into some of the moves they can make in order to develop a Super Bowl-caliber team.

In order to develop a solid plan for Cleveland’s offseason, we need to understand what they have to use. According to Spotrac, the Browns have a little over $24 million in cap space, and they also have their own draft picks for the first six rounds as well as the ability to swap seventh-round picks with the Lions and an additional fourth-round pick from the Lions to use in the NFL Draft. 

Trading Away Jarvis Landry

It is extremely difficult to envision the Browns being able to keep wide receiver Jarvis Landry and improve drastically in the offseason. He is about to enter the final season of his contract with a $16 million cap hit, and that makes him a candidate to be moved for a draft pick (probably somewhere in Day 2 of the draft).

The idea will be to try to get a wide receiver in the draft as well as either signing Allen Robinson or Mike Williams as a lead pass-catcher for less of a cap hit.

It allows for roster flexibility, and if they can do this, they would have a wide receiving core of Robinson/Allen, third year wide receiver Donovan Peoples-Jones, and second year receiver Anthony Schwartz, which could make for a dynamic young core.

Fix the Kicking Situation

Something that helped the Cincinnati Bengals take that huge step forward this season was having a solid and reliable kicker. 

Unfortunately, Chase McLaughlin does not seem to be that guy. He was 29th with a 71.4 field goal percentage and just 4-10 with kicks 40-49 yards. LSU’s Cade York is in the NFL Draft and could be a potential fit with a late-round draft pick or signing a veteran that could be more sufficient.

Having a solid kicker is the difference of being decent to very good, and the Browns need that.  

Draft an Impact Wide Receiver

With Baker Mayfield healthy and on the final year of his rookie contract, give him all the weapons he could need and draft a star wide receiver in the first round.

The Browns hold the 13th overall pick, and PFF has the top five receivers as Garrett Wilson, Jameson Williams, Drake Londons, Chris Olave, and Treylon Burks. Honestly, the addition of Olave seems great with the Ohio connection and without the injury concerns that surround Williams and London. 

It helps the offense as they continue to run the football with Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt as their lead backs, and the NFL is built on solid offenses right now and a good enough defensive unit to hold their own.

Having the star wide receivers could help and be an impact move in a tough division with the AFC Champions, the Baltimore Ravens, and the Pittsburgh Steelers. 

Conclusion

The Cleveland Browns are not too far off from being a competitive roster as Baker Mayfield has shown ability when healthy and is still on his rookie contract.

Attacking wide receiver and kicker primarily seems to be a great focus while also targeting some defensive help in a potential second cornerback or a Clowney reunion.

It’s a tough division, but if healthy, they can really make a run with a friendly schedule in the 2022 season.

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