Hope for the Cleveland Browns

Aug 12, 2016; Green Bay, WI, USA; Cleveland Browns head coach Hue Jackson during the game against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports /

Ronnie Brown under center. A wide receiver in motion. The New England defense panics. Linebackers scramble from their original positions. Brown snaps the ball. Fakes the handoff to Ricky Williams. The cameraman is fooled. Brown is halfway down the field. 62 yards later Brown dances into the end zone and the Dolphins win 38-13 over their bitter rival in Foxborough.

The Miami Dolphins took a 1-15 record and flipped it on its head as they surprised everyone with a shocking 11 wins and a playoff birth in 2008. They are the only team to win the AFC East during Brady’s reign.

A top 10 defense helped anchor the team, but only two players made the Pro Bowl on this squad; running back Ronnie Brown and linebacker Joey Porter. It wasn’t a very talented roster with Chad Pennington under center throwing to the likes of Ted Ginn and Greg Camarillo.

But Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams led a different offensive approach from David Lee; the Wildcat. Using Brown to run, hand off or even throw the ball confused defenses as the scheme averaged over 7 yards a play that season.

Cleveland can mimic this strategy. Looking at the Browns roster, the same creativity will be needed to find success. Hugh Jackson is a talented offensive coach that can bring out the most in his players. With athletic yet fragile pieces in RG3, Terrelle Pryor, Corey Coleman, and Josh Gordon, optimism can be found as the raw talent is there.

We’re not expecting another 11-5 record or a playoff birth, but the Browns could surprise the NFL by not finishing No. 32 in power rankings. Isaiah Crowell can build from a promising Week 1 while Jackson draws up creative and bizarre plays to get the most out of its limited receivers like Pryor and Coleman. RG3’s deep ball is one of the best in the league while his ability to use his legs creates more matchup issues.

The Browns defense is nothing spectacular after watching rookie Carson Wentz burn them for 278 yards and two scores. If this continues wins will be hard to come by. But a 6-10 record can show vast improvement under a new regime that can hopefully create stability. RG3 is starting quarterback No. 25 for Cleveland since 1999.

Maybe it seems desperate. Maybe it is because of the Cavaliers winning a championship. But optimism can spread across the Dawg Pound with Hue Jackson. This offense is not fit to compete with New England, Carolina or Arizona, but neither was Miami. Yet they still averaged 20 points a game by any means necessary.