The Cleveland Browns had some glaring holes on the roster heading into this offseason, but GM Andrew Berry did a remarkable job bringing in new talent to fill those gaps. Offensive line, wide receiver, and depth in the secondary were all significant issues that required profound solutions this summer, and the only question now is how good those solutions are going to be after Berry spent significant draft capital and cap space to hopefully turn those weaknesses into strengths.
There was a legitimate argument to be made that the wide receiver room was the worst in the NFL last season. With rookies KC Concepcion and Denzel Boston now here, it will make life much easier on whoever the starting quarterback is, but there is another accomplished veteran receiver whose performance will go a long way toward dictating how good this offense is going to be in 2026.
During a recent episode of The Ken Carman Show with Anthony Lima, Cleveland.com’s Mary Kay Cabot called in to talk about No. 1 receiver Jerry Jeudy. Coming off a season that saw his numbers essentially get cut in half across the board compared to his breakout 2024 campaign, Cabot believes he has had a great offseason and is a strong candidate to have a big rebound season.
“It’s an opportunity for Jerry to rebound. He did not fare well with everything going on at quarterback. He’s working really, really hard this offseason. He seems rejuvenated. I think it’s gonna come down to the quarterback play. He’s gonna get his chances. He’s still going to be the No. 1 receiver, or at least he’s gonna start out the season as the No. 1 wideout. He’ll have an opportunity to go out there and have that 1,000-yard and Pro Bowl season again,” Cabot said.
"It's an opportunity for Jerry to rebound. He did not fair well with everything going on at QB. He seems rejuvenated… He's gonna get his chances. He's still going to be the number 1 receiver."
📞@MaryKayCabot on Jerry Jeudy after a disappointing 2026 season pic.twitter.com/YqQIXGlna9
— 92.3 The Fan (@923TheFan) July 16, 2026
Having multiple starting quarterbacks once again was not ideal for Jeudy, as he was unable to get on the same page with any of them. The best he has looked in his career was during the portion of the 2024 season when Jameis Winston was under center and feeding him missiles all over the field. None of Cleveland’s starters were able to do that last year, though Jeudy didn’t help himself either with ten dropped passes.
The other issue last season was how easy it was for defenses to key in on Jeudy given how barren the rest of the receiver room was. Cedric Tillman missed extensive time due to injury again, Isaiah Bond didn’t start making noise until the end of the season, and outside of Jeudy, no receiver on the team caught more than 21 passes. It was an unacceptable level of production that was largely saved by rookie tight end Harold Fannin’s outstanding rookie year.
Not everyone believes that the Browns can take another step forward in 2026, but the talent is in place to do so provided the quarterback position gets resolved. Jerry getting back to 1,000+ yards would do wonders for this offense and whoever that quarterback is, so it will be interesting to see if he can prove 2024 wasn’t a flash in the pan.
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