Analyst Names Which Browns Rookie Will Have The Most Impact

The Cleveland Browns not only wanted to upgrade a wide receiver group that ranked last in the NFL last season, but they were also looking for someone who could serve as their No. 1 going forward. Ideally, that rookie would take over the role at some point during the season.

Now, it looks like that transition has already been completed. After stealing the show in minicamps and OTAs, Denzel Boston looks like he’s already become the team’s top target in the passing game.

At 6-foot-4, 215 pounds, Boston has been described as a “beast,” and he has backed that up by catching everything in sight during these spring practices. As a second-round pick, he is proving to be one of the biggest bargains, and possibly the biggest steal, from the 2026 NFL Draft.

That is why analyst Garrett Bush is naming Boston as the Browns’ rookie who will have the most impact this season, clearly distancing himself from the rest of their 10-player draft class.

“If you go back and watch the practices and look at it, I think it’s obvious Denzel Boston’s going to have the most impact. Doesn’t seem to be missing any balls. It doesn’t seem like the speed of the game is too big for him. He plays the same against rookies. He plays the same against veterans. I think this guy is built like one of them dudes. I love what Andrew Berry said: ‘Hey, man. We want you to come in and be a bully.’ Then, these first few games of practice, he has been just that,” Bush said.

Of the entire Cleveland #Browns rookie class 👀🏈@Gbush91 says WR Denzel Boston will have the most immediate and significant impact in Year 1 of anyone in the 2026 class 🔥https://t.co/XWWFbh8qFM pic.twitter.com/Fi8ripthjy

— Ultimate Cleveland Sports Show (@ultCLEsports) June 15, 2026

At No. 39 overall, Boston was the second wide receiver taken by the Browns in the draft, after they used the No. 24 overall pick in the first round on KC Concepcion. While Concepcion is living up to that status, Boston has performed well beyond his, saying he was motivated by being just the seventh wide receiver off the board.

He made an immediate impact by catching a long pass from Deshaun Watson at an early practice, then continued to turn heads with fluid routes at every level and using a huge catching radius to his advantage. His next challenge will come at training camp when he will finally compete against veteran defensive backs Denzel Ward and Grant Delpit, who have sat out all of the workouts so far.

With Jerry Jeudy coming out of the final minicamp with a hamstring injury, Boston could have an even bigger opportunity to take over the top spot on the Browns’ wide receiver depth chart, if he isn’t there already.