More Q&A 

Round two of questions seeking answers. Today, the offense. As for what to expect from the Browns' offense this season, fewer questions seeking answers appear on the docket. Such as . . . 

What can fans expect from the unit that helped catapult the offense from average at best entering the 2020 season to one of the best in the National Football League?

Having the offensive line return intact us a huge plus. The only problem there is how long they will stay healthy and whether there is sufficient quality depth to plug holes when they arise. 

Last season, the line missed only eight games due to injuries. However, five of those eight belonged to right guard Wyatt Teller, arguably the best of the group, with knee and ankle problems.  Keeping him vertical and ready to play is essential this season.

From a quality depth stance. however, the player the line can least afford to lose is center JC Tretter, who hasn't missed a game since joining the Browns in 2017. His backup is smallish (barley six feet tall) Nick Harris, who filled in twice for Teller last season and was -- being generous here -- mediocre.

Veteran Chris Hubbard returns from late-season knee surgery to back up tackles Jack Conklin and Jedrick Wills Jr., along with draft choice James Hudson; Michael Dunn and Blake Hance played briefly but well while filling in for Teller; and Drew Forbes returns after opting out last season (COVID-19).

Staying healthy is the No 1 priority up front, of course. But it's comforting to know the dropoff in talent won't be an issue, especially with peerless offensive line coach Bill Callahan around to make certain it isn't.

But what about Wills, whose run blocking left a lot to be desired last season as a rookie?

Can't deny that. But he also graded very well in pass blocking, which was surprising because that aspect of the game is difficult to begin with, particularly when switching from one side of the line to the other. He adjusted nicely.

Now that he has that down pat, he can concentrate on elevating his run-blocking skills by getting stronger at the point of attack. He was too often slow out of his stance and arriving too late to make a play. It's all about timing in the run game,

What can we expect from the others -- Tretter, Joel Bitonio and Conklin?

Pretty much what they've done over the last several seasons. Steady play, few mistakes, play in relative anonymity. The sort of stuff you don't realize until the game is over. It's a lunch-pail atmosphere in the trenches. And you can bet the so-called skill players appreciate it.

Bitonio turns 30 this year. Isn't that kind of old for an offensive lineman?

Not any more. Players along the offensive line are playing longer than ever before. It's not unusual to see them play well into their 30s. So based on that, Bitonio could be considered in the midst of his prime. Besides, he is one of the best pulling guards in the league. And he's having a ball now after toiling his first six seasons with some of the worst teams in NFL history.

Getting back to Tretter, what happens if he goes down?

Trouble,

Unless someone who doesn't immediately come to mind beats him out in training camp, Harris will be the man. That's a big problem. His small (vertical) stature makes it difficult for him to be effective against much larger and stronger defensive linemen. Still can't figure out why the Browns drafted him, Cross your fingers Tretter stays healthy.

Now the offense as a whole. What can fans look forward to this season after such a specular 2020?

It's easy to say why mess with something if it works. But that's pretty much what I look forward to this season. And then if opposing defenses stop it, that's when you change, But if you're good enough from an execution standpoint, that shouldn't happen too often.

Head coach Kevin Stefanski and quarterback Baker Mayfield joined each other on the same page roughly a third of the way through last season and just about everything seemed to click. No reason to think the same offensive philosophy won't work again.

But in the event it doesn't, Stefanski is wise enough and prescient enough to be ready for it and quickly make changes. In fact, it wouldn't surprise to see him incorporate a few new wrinkles this season in an effort to further expand what has proven to be the franchise's best offense since the days of Lindy Infante nearly four decades ago.

Bottom line: We'll still see equal parts run game/pass game. That is the Stefanski credo. Both aspects of the game sets up the other, especially with the quality talents of the pieces and parts within the offense. Game plan to their strengths and turn them loose.

And Mayfield?

He's the ringmaster, the linchpin. He makes it happen. Stefanski has designed an offense that caters to his quarterback's strong points.  As long as they stay linked, the results will be positive. There is no reason o believe -- or even think -- that will change with Mayfield approaching his prime.

The more comfortable he is in this offense, the more his accuracy with the forward pass improves. It rose more than three percentage points last season. He is just a few percentage points away from duplicating his college-career 68.5% accuracy rate.

And with terrific talent at wide receiver, tight end and running back, distribution of the football should further enhance his value to the cause. This is a loaded offense with someone who appears to be the right captain at the helm.

In what way will the aforementioned be factors?

Let's start with the tight ends because of their importance in a Kevin Stefanski offense. I see cast improvement from pro sophomore Harrison Bryant, who began hot last season, but faded. Look for him to become one of Mayfield's favorite targets on third down. 

Austin Hooper provided strong blocking on the perimeter last season, but is not a natural receiver. He and Bryant will be regulars in the base offense with David Njoku, who wavers deciding whether he wants to stay in Cleveland, seeing spot duty and decide he finally wants to leave. Again.

Count on Stefanski, the playcaller, dialing up his tight ends often to take heat off the wide receivers. All of which gives Mayfield the kind of latitude he needs to keep defenses honest.

Now the wide receivers?

An interesting group to be sure. Interesting in that this group provided the most valuable contributions last season after the highest profile member of the group went down with a season-ending injury in game seven. If anything, that group got better in his absence.

Odell Beckham Jr.'s 23-game career in Cleveland has produced just seven passing touchdowns. He had 45 scores in five seasons with the NewYork Giants, which suggests he was far more successful and connected better with Eli Manning than Mayfield. 

A deep dive into the stats reveals Mayfield and Beckham have connected on just a shade more 55% of the time with the Browns. Mayfield's accuracy totals went up substantially and his interception totals down dramatically after Beckham's departure. Draw your own conclusions.

Rashard Higgins is not nearly as fast or quick or spectacular as Beckham, but he is far more reliable and open more frequently. He and Mayfield have connected on 69% of the passes directed his way in three seasons. In part-time duty, Higgins has scored nine touchdowns in 36 games with Mayfield. Again, draw your own conclusion.

Beckham will be back following ACL surgery, along with the much more reliable Jarvis Landry, KhaDarel Hodge, Donovan Peoples-Jones, who came on strong late in his rookie season, and rookie speedster Anthony Schwartz, a world-class sprinter.

The latter is interesting in that he (and OBJ) give the Browns a quick-strike threat, which is antithetical to Stefanski's philosophy of ball control. .Only one problem. Beckham at least can catch the football, often times spectacularly. Schwartz, who I believe is a sprinter masquerading as a football player, cannot. He is a one-trick pony, who might be used more often on jet sweeps or reverses. Or as a decoy.

All in all, it is a solid room. The only possible discord could be Beckham's possible unhappiness in not seeing the football enough. With all the talent at the skill positions, Stefanski must utilize him within the framework of the team and not force-feed him the ball.

Up next, the running backs?

Unquestionably the best tandem in the NFL in Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt. It is a luxury Stefanski does not take lightly. A perusal of last season's statistics offers ample evidence. To wit:

Chubb and Hunt combined for 2.362 yards (rushing and receiving) on 442 touches (only two fumbles), an average of 5.34 yards per touch. They scored 23 of the club's 48 touchdowns, 18 on the ground. And Chubb missed four early-season games with a knee injury.

Hunt, the more versatile of the two, is just as dangerous a receiver as he is a runner. He is valuable flanking out as well as lining up behind/next to Mayfield. Chubb, the north and south runner, is not twitch-quick but is deceivingly fast once he finds running room.

He is your typical between-the-tackle brute with quick feet who can bust a long scoring run with suddenness that needs to be seen to be believed and a threat to rip one off at any time. 

Based on how he used hisi prized duo last season, Stefanski's creative juices should flow as he conjures up new looks to take advantage of their unique talents. 

Next: General questions seeking answers

Q & A

Questions seeking answers as the Browns approach the beginning of training camp for unquestionably the most important season this iteration of the franchise has anticipated since the rebirth.

Coming off a never-expected-that season that captured the imagination of the entire National Football League, the Browns as a result enter the 2021 season with extraordinarily high expectations forecasts.

Just like that, they have become the darlings of the NFL elite after a stunning 11-5 season that came thisclose to being 13-3, and a short playoff run that seriously threatened to dethrone the defending Super Bowl champions.

For the first time in nearly 40 years, Super Bowl and Cleveland Browns in the same sentence is no longer oxymoronic. Wait'll next year has arrived with a team that has retained one of the league's most dangerous offenses and a defense that has been almost totally revamped for the better.

And yet questions abound, as they should. On both sides of the football and special teams. They seek answers that could help pave the way to playing a football game next Feb. 13 in SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Calif.

After plodding through two decades of miserable football, it feels weird to type those words. The dream is always there, of course. And it always evaporated, of course. Until last season, when head coach Kevin Stefanski delivered phase one of that dream.

Okay, enough of the preamble. Time for questions.

Who will be working under the most pressure this season?

No, not a player. It's got to be Joe Woods, who took more verbal abuse last season that any other coach or player. To be fair, the defensive coordinator was working, with a couple of exceptions, with a ragtag group of players on that side of the ball. Their failure to make plays was alarmingly inevitable and depressingly often.

The same cannot be said this season. Not after General Manager Andrew Berry, whose revamp of the offensive line last season resulted in an explosive offense, turned his attention to the defense. The results will result in as many as nine new starters and/or major contributors via free agency and the college draft.

A cautionary note: Do not expect this new defense to come out of the chute and perform as though it were midseason. That's not going to happen. But it will be better on an exponential basis as the season unfolds.

The return of cornerback Greedy Williams and safety Grant Delpit, who missed the entire 2020 season with major injuries, will automatically improve the depth at those positions in a secondary that routinely  gave up big plays. 

With the addition of free agents Jadeveon Clowney and Takkarist McKinley, the drafting of Tommy Togiai and the return of Andrew Billings from last season's COVID-19 opt-out to help the great Myles Garrett, the defensive line ostensibly should be better despite the departures of edge rusher Olivier Vernon and tackles Sheldon Richardson and Larry Ogunjobi.

At linebacker, the drafting of Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah and free-agent signing of Anthony Walker add speed and savvy behind the line. Walker solidifies the run game, while JOK most likely will be utilized as a hybrid linebacker/safety.

Last season, Woods had a convenient excuse for the Browns' constant failures on defense. He will not have that luxury this season. Not with the talent Berry has accumulated. He must get it right.

What about returnees like Jordan Elliott, Jacob Phillips, Sione Takitaki, Malcolm Smith and Mack Wilson? Where do they fit in? Or do they fit in at all?

Most will fit in. But at least one of that group will be an ex-Brown. Perhaps two. The drafting of Tony Fields II puts Smith, Takitaki and Wilson in jeopardy at linebacker. More-so the latter two, who have not distinguished themselves in two seasons. Elliott faces tough competition with the return of Billings and the signing of veteran Malik Jackson.

The secondary is very crowded. Ten cornerbacks and seven safeties. What gives?

Denzel Ward, top pick Greg Newsome II, free-agent signee Troy Hill and Williams are locks at cornerback. So are the trio of John Johnson III (free agency). returnee Ronnie Harrison and Delpit at safety. M. J. Stewart Jr. and Robert Jackson will serve as depth at corner, while the drafting of Richard LeCounte could pave the way for the release of safety Sheldrick Redwine.

So what kind of a pass rush can fans expect this season?

Unless Woods incorporates more blitzes in the defensive playbook, most likely not as many as last season's 38 sacks. The signing of Clowney will enhance the run defense for certain. He is is not much of a pass rusher. Neither is McKinley, who was a four-season disappointment for the Atlanta Falcons. The Brsowns will miss Vernon's nine sacks last season.

Garrett can expect to see double teams most of the season unless Clowney and/or McKinley can miraculously find different ways to get to opposing quarterbacks. The hope is rookie Curtis Weaver, picked up on injury waivers at the beginning of last season, comes through. The smallish (6-2, 265) Weaver, a college standout at Boise State, is roughly the same size as Vernon.

Next: A look at the offense and questions in general.