Josh Gordon isn't the Browns only Good Player
Now that we've finished laughing at the Jacoby Ellsbury contract, it's time to start thinking about the Patriots Week 14 opponent: the Cleveland Browns. And when people talk about the Cleveland Browns these days, they talk about Josh Gordon. It's understandable, given that the Browns aren't particularly good or interesting, and that Gordon has 498 freaking yards in the last two weeks.
However, believe it or not, Gordon is not the only standout player on the Browns. Far from it, actually. The Browns have a surprising amount of top-notch talent, but have been undone by lack of depth and glaring holes in the roster, especially at the all-important quarterback position. Here's a look at several studs to keep an eye on this Sunday.
Joe Haden, Cornerback
Haden quietly may be the best cornerback in the entire NFL. While Darrelle Revis recovers from last year's torn ACL and Richard Sherman benefits from a fantastic pass rush and great safety play, Haden continues to anonymously shut down the league's best receivers week in and week out. He's given up 9 catches for only 58 yards to AJ Green...in two games this year. He held freaking Megatron to 3 catches and 25 yards...albeit Megatron was less than 100% in his return from a knee injury, but still! Megatron! He's been doing stuff like this year-in and year-out but has largely flown under the radar because, well, how much Cleveland Browns football have you watched recently?
Haden should also scare Pats fans because he's certainly pissed off after giving up a rare, eventual game-winning touchdown to Cecil Shorts III last week. After the game an emotional Haden's voice was cracking as he told the press how much he "hates f*cking losing". If Haden gets the assignment of locking down Julian Edelman, it may force Tom Brady to look elsewhere from "Minitron" this week.
Joe Thomas, Left Tackle
It's often said that the NFL draft is an inexact science, but Joe Thomas is one of the rare cases that every predicted exactly right. Every pre-draft prognosticator said that Thomas would be one of the game's premier left tackles the second he stepped onto an NFL field, and that he would do so game-after-game, season-after-season. Lo and behold, here we are in Thomas's seventh season, and he's a deserving six time Pro Bowler and three time All Pro who's never missed a start.
The steady presence of Thomas at left tackle will make it a tall task for Patriots DE Chandler Jones to add to his career high 10.5 sacks. In fact, it wouldn't surprise me to see the Patriots try to move Jones around, particularly inside on passing downs, to allow him a chance to escape Thomas and exploit some of the Brown's lesser linemen.
Jordan Cameron, Tight End
The latest in a long line of former basketball players to turn into star pass catching tight ends, Cameron got off to a sizzling start in his breakout 2013 campaign. Cameron caught 5 touchdowns in the Browns first four games, with four of those coming from former Pats backup QB Brian Hoyer. I started calling Cameron "Gronk Jr." for his red zone prowess.
Cameron's statistical production has since dropped back to earth, largely due to the smorgasbord of awful quarterbacks the Browns have trotted out there since Hoyer's unfortunate torn ACL in Week 5. However, the big tight end has already proven what he can do with merely competent quarterback play, and it's impressive. Like Gronk, Cameron boasts an impressive combination of size (6'5", 245 lbs), athletic ability, hands and catch radius. He already knows how to use his big body to shield defenders from the ball, has the ability to make tough, contested catches, and has deceiving run after the catch ability.
Cameron should scare Pats fans this week, especially because of the struggles the Patriots linebackers have had much of the season covering running backs and tight ends. I'm not sure Donta' Hightower running down the field with Cameron is a matchup that favors the Patriots right now. Furthermore, there's a decent chance the Browns will have an inexperience signal caller under center. Younger, inexperienced quarterbacks often like to rely heavily on their tight ends, especially when said tight ends have flashed dominant receiving ability. Also, how much worse can Caleb Hanie or Alex Tanney be from the Brandon Weeden gong show?
D'Qwell Jackson, Linebacker
Jackson is another guy who has quietly been excellent in Cleveland for a number of years. Aside from pectoral injuries that kept him out for most of 2009 and all of 2010, Jackson has been a Jerod Mayo-like tackling machine in the middle of Cleveland's defense ever since getting drafted in the second round in 2006. The inside backer is in the midst of his fourth 100 tackle season (the only times he's failed to reach that mark are his rookie year and a six game 2009 campaign) and has two 150 tackle seasons on his resume, including a league leading 154 in 2008. Jackson is also the signal caller for a defense that has been pretty solid, particularly against the run, where they allow only 3.5 yards per carry to opposing runners. After leading the AFC with 118 tackles last season (to go with 3.5 sacks, 2 interceptions and 2 forced fumbles), Jackson was rewarded by his peers with a spot on the NFL Network's player generated Top 100 Players of 2012 list.
