2025 Team Previews: Cleveland Browns

Cleveland Browns 2025 Team Preview

All ADP data is courtesy of Fantasy Pros.

** = target in drafts at this ADP

Relevant Players

Quinshon Judkins, RB (ADP: 62, RB26): We start this preview off on a bummer note, as I was prepared to gush about Judkins’ upside as a rookie, and the value of having a bell cow in an offense that nobody is excited for. Then news hit our feeds about his arrest for domestic violence, and now all our analysis is clouded by complete uncertainty about whether Cleveland will actually sign their second round pick, if he’ll face a suspension, or how it impacts his availability for training camp. What if they do sign him, but late in the summer and he hasn’t had time with the offense? It’s made him almost a total unknown, so this ADP listed here will probably be utterly useless by the time you’re drafting. Alas, I’ll do my best here to talk about the player.

On the field, Judkins seemed set to be an impactful rookie RB. His numbers at Ohio State might not be the gaudiest you’ve seen, but that’s because he was sharing work with another big-time second round RB named TreyVeon Henderson. Despite the stiff competition for workload, Judkins put up more than 1,200 yards from scrimmage and posted his third straight collegiate season with 14+ touchdowns. Judkins seems to be a natural replacement for longtime Browns star Nick Chubb, who himself was a combination of speed and power that made him elite. Judkins isn’t quite as elusive as Chubb was, nor is he quite as fast, but Judkins certainly brings the pain when he collides with defenders and he has more than enough juice for generating big plays. If his legal issues can be sorted out in time for Cleveland to sign him and work him into the offense, then I am very bullish on Judkins’ ability to be a very relevant player for managers right out of the gate. I would’ve marked him as a value here, but I’ll wait until there is clarity.

Jerry Jeudy, WR (ADP: 66, WR29): Jeudy had his best season last year in an offense that was putrid, continuing what’s been a mostly baffling NFL career to this point. Despite catching passes from a combination of Deshaun Watson, Jameis Winston, Dorian Thompson-Robinson and Bailey Zappe, Jeudy blew away his previous career-high in yardage with 1,229 yards and four touchdowns. Now, the numbers are a bit deceiving. It’s inflated by three games in particular in which he totaled 142 yards vs. the Saints, 235 yards vs. the Broncos, and 108 yards vs. the Chiefs. Those games also accounted for half of his four touchdowns, so outside of those blowups – which count!!! – he was a much more pedestrian option. He also won’t have Jameis Winston feeding him the rock, but he’ll have Joe Flacco, hopefully, who had a similar run as Winston did in 2023 with the Browns.

Jeudy’s season took off once Amari Cooper was traded to Buffalo. Before the Cooper trade, Jeudy posted one game with 70+ yards and had one touchdown. After Week 6, Jeudy surpassed the 70-yard mark seven times, did it five straight games from Week 8-13, and hit that mark 6 of eight times in the immediate wake of the deal. He averaged 14 yards per catch after Week 8, after being at 12.4 pre-Week 7. It’s fair to think that 1,200+ yards was a bit fluky for a receiver who hadn’t ever reached 1,000 before in four seasons, but Jeudy did have tremendous pedigree entering the league and his big play bona fides have never been in doubt. I’d expect regression for Jeudy because this figures to be a low-scoring outfit, and Flacco is an elderly QB, but he’s going to be the Browns’ WR1. I don’t have Jeudy as a Top 30 WR, but it’s not unreasonable to have him in that large cluster of talents. This ADP places him toward the higher end so I likely won’t have him on many teams, but he’s got enough ceiling to make it justifiable.

**David Njoku, TE (ADP: 110, TE9): Njoku’s stats took a step back from his breakout in 2023, but that’s because injuries bit into his production. Njoku had more receptions per game in 2024 than he did in 2023, and was one off his 2023 TD total despite playing in five fewer games. Njoku isn’t the top target here, nor is this likely a prolific offense, so Njoku doesn’t have the ceiling of the upper echelon names at the position. Njoku’s yards per reception did drop significantly from 10.9 to 7.9, and his yards after the catch fell off badly too, but again, he was far from 100% for much of the campaign.

Njoku remains a critical piece of Cleveland’s passing game, a reliable bet for consistent target share, and a stable presence at a position where the variance is wild and can absolutely cost managers Ws. Njoku also possesses upper tier athleticism for the position, making him trusty as an end zone target. There won’t be a Top 3 breakout here, but he’s a good buy as the TE9.

Interesting Sleeper(s)

**Cedric Tillman, WR (ADP: 159, WR61): Tillman was breaking out before an injury shortened his season, and due to that, his ADP is very, very depressed compared to his ceiling. The Amari Cooper trade was just as beneficial to Tillman as it was for Jeudy, as Tillman had five receptions on the season prior to the deal. In the five weeks immediately after the deal, Tillman averaged 5.2 receptions, 66 yards and scored three touchdowns. He then got hurt, and Jeudy really took on the mantle as the WR1, leading to his significantly higher ADP. All that tells me is that Tillman’s the best value on the team.

Tillman’s not the most complete WR you’ll find, but when given opportunity he proved that he’s a legit X receiver. He posted a 70.2% win rate vs. man (62nd percentile) and while you’d like a bit more success on those nine routes (48.1%), he was crushing it on slants and digs, which made up almost 45% of his routes. There is a strong chance that Tillman actually turns into Cleveland’s WR1 this season, and even for a low-volume, low-scoring offense that’s valuable. This ADP is extremely low for a guy who flashed this much potential; in those five games without Cooper, Tillman cleared 75 yards three times and scored all three of his touchdowns. The WR room got a bit more crowded, and the floor is low, but Tillman has yet to fail when he’s being given chances. I think this ADP is a total steal and is genuinely exciting.

**Jerome Ford, RB (ADP: 165, RB55): Ford is also a total steal at this ADP, although it’s likely to rise as the summer progresses and the fog around Judkins thickens. While Judkins is built for bell cow work, he’s still a rookie, and Ford still works as a perfect complement. If Judkins does get suspended, Ford is the clearest option to step into the lead role, and while he’ll share work, Ford was a useful player in spurts in 2023 while Chubb was in and out of the lineup. It’s never a bad thing to have explosive, efficient pass-catching RBs as depth, and that’s exactly what Ford brings to the table.

Notable Players

Joe Flacco, QB (ADP: 209, QB36): Flacco may be old, but he can still sling it. It’ll rarely be pretty with Flacco, but he’s not afraid to throw the ball a ton, and take big risks. Sure, there will be times when he is piling up interceptions, but he’s also thrown for double-digit touchdowns in back-to-back seasons while making just 11 starts total. Of course, if the Browns’ record is in the tank we’ll see Flacco shoved aside so the younger QBs can prove their wares, but until then Flacco is a sneaky value in two-QB/SuperFlex formats.

Shedeur Sanders, QB (ADP: 236, QB34): Sanders has no value in redraft this season unless he wins the job outright in camp, which seems unlikely. In deep two-QB leagues, or dynasty leagues though, Sanders shouldn’t be written off entirely. Yes, he fell comically far in the draft and yes, NFL people who know stuff are down on his prospects. He still threw for 4,134 yards and 37 touchdowns at Colorado and that’s hard to completely ignore. It just means if you haven’t done your rookie drafts yet, and it’s a SuperFlex/two-QB setup, maybe take a flier.

Diontae Johnson, WR (ADP: 258, WR87): Johnson is his own worst enemy. I’ve long been a backer of his because he has tremendous talent, and he proved that in Year 3 in Pittsburgh when he put up 1,100 yards and eight touchdowns. Since then, though, a combination of injuries and personal unreliability have caused him to flame out for four different teams. Now he’s in his Calvin Ridley era, trying to prove he’s still an upper tier player even though he’s past the typical years of physical prime.

As much as I liked Johnson’s skills, he is entering Year 7 and he’s got just one 1,000-yard season on his resume. Combine that with a bad attitude and established options in the WR room that showed upside in 2024, and it’s an uphill battle for relevance. I will not completely dismiss Johnson, but I think he needs an injury to step into a big enough role to be relevant, and he has to behave while he awaits that opportunity. Big asks.

Harold Fannin, TE (ADP: 289, TE39): Fannin is a player I’d be screaming from the rooftops about as a value if he wasn’t behind Njoku. I talked here about how it’s much less farfetched these days for rookie TEs to put up fantasy relevant stats, and Fannin’s college numbers were absolutely ridiculous. As a junior at Bowling Green, Fannin put up 1,555 yards and 11 total touchdowns. He also caught 117 passes. Yeah, he’s not up against SEC defenses, but he also doesn’t have an SEC quarterback! There’s no way to look at that production and not expect this dude to be a weapon in the NFL. I am in love with his talent, but the question is how long before we see it unleashed in a full time role? In redraft I don’t think he’s draftable, but if you’re in dynasty or deep keeper,

Dillon Gabriel, QB (ADP: N/A): Gabriel had big numbers at Oregon, and I suppose he warrants a late flier in dynasty leagues since he was drafted two rounds ahead of Shedeur Sanders and is likely to see some playing time this year as the Browns attempt to figure out their QB of the future. The problem is that he’s undersized and has well-below average arm strength. We have seen undersized QBs thrive, and we know that you don’t need have Brett Favre’s cannon to have success, but without either trait the odds are stacked against you. Gabriel looks like a career backup, so for fantasy, with a ceiling so low it’s not really worth the gamble.

Handcuffs

**Dylan Sampson, RB (ADP: 179, RB57): Sampson didn’t rate much as a later-round RB flier for the Browns, and he looked like depth. Now that Judkins’ status is up in the air, all of a sudden his 1,634 yards from scrimmage and 22 touchdowns as a junior at Tennessee have become interesting. The Vols offense was explosive last season, in large part because of Sampson’s ability to break off big runs. He also absorbed 258 carries and caught 20 passes, so he showed that if called upon to be the lead back he can handle the workload. If Judkins is going to miss time this year, I’m very much interested in him as a dart throw.

Pierre Strong Jr., RB (ADP: N/A): Strong is around. He’s entering Year 3 with the Browns, so it’s possible he’s leaned on at the outset if Judkins is suspended due to organizational familiarity, but I don’t envision a big role for him without catastrophe befalling this team.