Tuesday was the deadline for NFL teams to cut their roster down to 53 players. A lot of hard decisions were made.

For some, it’s the official end of a lifelong dream. A few will get picked up on the waiver wire and make a team elsewhere. Others will be moved to the Browns practice squad, or another team will sign them.

It’s time to get excited though, as the NFL regular season begins on Thursday Night, September 5th.

The Cleveland Browns had a surplus of talent at wide receiver and are hoping to be able to sign at least 2 of them to the practice squad.

We have our initial 53!

📰» https://t.co/ciVMEf1GMp pic.twitter.com/gfVzschBEB

— Cleveland Browns (@Browns) August 27, 2024

The key word here is “initial” 53-man roster.

All-Pro and Pro Bowl running back Nick Chubb was placed on the PUP List to start the season, but will be able to play at some point this season.

Rookie defensive tackle Michael Hall Jr has been placed on the Commissioners Exempt List. He cannot practice with the team, while the NFL investigates what’s ongoing with his criminal domestic violence case.

My very first thought when seeing the roster was that the Browns defense is absolutely loaded along the defensive line and defensive back.

Reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year Myles Garrett and Za’Darius Smith as starting bookends. Ogbo Okoronkwo and Alex Wright had a combined 9.5 sacks in reserve duty. Defensive tackle was vastly improved and got better with the addition of Quinton Jefferson and his six sacks last season. Davlin Tomlinson is DT #1, and Shelby Harris just eat up blockers.

The Browns have the best (in my opinion) defensive backfield in the league. Cornerbacks Denzel Ward, Martin Emerson and Greg Newsome starting with Grant Delpit and Juan Thornhill holding down the safety positions. Cam Mitchell and rookie Myles Harden providing depth at corner. Veteran Rodney McCloud and Ronnie Hickman provide quality depth at safety.

The linebacker position looks completely new because it mostly is. Pro Bowler Jeremiah Owusu-Kormoah (JOK) will have new mates with Jordan Hicks playing the middle and Devin Bush playing the strong side. I’m not a fan of the depth. Tony Fields is the best of the bunch.

The Browns decided to keep 4 quarterbacks on the roster, though I think someone will be traded. Of course, Deshaun Watson is the starter, but the rumor mill was working that backup Jameis Winston was being shopped around. Cleveland kept Tyler Huntley, as well as last season’s rookie Dorian Thompson-Robinson (DTR).

The team kept on 2 running backs. Jerome Ford stepped in after Nick Chubb went down in Week 2 last season. He ran for 812 yards with 4 TDs, and had 44 catches with 5 TDs. He proved to be versatile had the toughness to play nearly a full season as a starter. Pierre Strong Jr averaged 4.6 yards per carry in his limited time. Look for the Browns to resign D’onta Foreman in the upcoming days, after some moves.

Cleveland kept 6 wide receivers and only 2 tight ends. WR Amari Cooper is coming off of back-to-back 1,000 yard receiving seasons. The team traded for WR Jerry Jeudy to get a bona-fide #2 receiver. They’re hoping that Elijah Moore will have a better season in his second season on the team. Cedric Tillman is a big body wideout and they drafted Jamari Thrash out of Louisville in the third round. I predicted in my post draft article, that Thrash will overtake Moore by season’s end.

Tight end David Njoku made his first Pro-Bowl last season. He had a career year, catching 81 passes, for 882 yards, and 6 TD’s. Like the running back position, the Browns are going to get a third tight end, either on the waiver wire or free agency,

It didn’t matter who played quarterback last season, Cooper and Njoku became their “go-to” guys.

The offensive line is a strength, and hopefully will have much better injury luck this season than last. It all starts with Pro-Bowl and All-Pro left guard Joel Bitonio. Fellow Pro-Bowler, right guard Wyatt Teller is a beast, though he needs to cut back on his penalty calls. Center Ethan Pocic has been a great find, entering his third season on the team.

Starting left tackle Jedrick Wills Jr is back for what might and should (in my opinion) be his final season. At right tackle, veteran Jack Conklin is back. He was lost to a season ending injury in the first game last season. That allowed rookie DaWand Jones to get extensive playing time. Jones was a revelation. If he hadn’t gotten hurt himself, he’d been an All-Pro.

Depth along the offensive line is questionable at best. Hudson and Dunn struggled when they were asked to step up. Backup center Nick Harris is back in Cleveland after spending a season in Seattle. Rookie right guard Zak Zinter has a lot of fans excited. He’s similar to fellow right guard Wyatt Teller, so the personality fits to what this team wants to do.

The Browns haven’t had good consistent kicking since the Phil Dawson days. Dustin Hopkins came in and had a career season in field goal percentage. He made 91.7% of his kicks last season, going 33 of 36. He was a perfect 8 for 8 from beyond 50 yards and had a career long of 58 yards.

Punter Corey Bojorquez is back for his third season and Charley Hughlett returns as long snapper in his 10th season for the Browns.

The fact of the matter is that the Cleveland Browns 2024 starters can go out onto the field with any team in the NFL and beat them. Will the lack of overall team depth, hurt them in the end? Will DeShaun Watson finally snap out of it, and play even half of his 2020 self?

The Browns can the roster to make the playoffs once again and even with a bit of luck (for a change), could even win the division and more.

– by Sean McKenzie

Follow me on X(Twitter)…..JoeAmerican6771 and OhioMan1776.

Stats and infomation courtesy of…..ESPN, NFL, profootball-database, Cleveland Browns.

Pictures and other media courtesy of…..wallpapercave, X, theathletic, clutchpoints, and cleveland.com.