2023 NFL Season: Four teams who crushed the offseason

2. Cleveland Browns

Last season was a bit rough for the Cleveland Browns. The team went 7-10, and their quarterback, Deshaun Watson, struggled mightily as he posted the worst passer rating of his career. This is a tough pill to swallow for the franchise as they invested a ton of money and draft capital to acquire Watson back in 2022.

Luckily for Browns fans, the team’s future looks pretty bright because their front office went to work this offseason.

One of the biggest things the Brown did this offseason was work on their defense, which was one of the worst defenses in the league last season. They attempted to fix that by signing defensive tackle Dalvin Tomlinson and safety Juan Thornhill. They also made a big trade, sending a pair of future day-three picks to the Minnesota Vikings for veteran edge rusher Za’Darius Smith.

They also addressed their defense in the draft, selecting Baylor defensive tackle Siaki Ika and Northwestern cornerback Cameron Mitchell. With all of these moves, the Browns’ defense should be a lot better in 2023.

The Browns also made some big moves to improve their offense. One of the biggest moves they made on this side of the ball was trading for Jets wide receiver Elijah Moore, who was productive as a rookie but seemed to be a poor fit with the Jets’ coaching staff.

They also added a lot of talented players in the draft, including Tennessee wide receiver Cedric Tillman and Ohio State offensive linemen Luke Wypler and Dawand Jones. None of these players are necessarily expected to start, but they could all have an impact during their rookie season.

The Browns didn’t make a ton of flashy moves this offseason, but they did a lot of great things and have put themselves to be really good if Deshaun Watson can bounce back and replicate the production he had with the Houston Texans.