Browns GM Andrew Berry has been praised for finding and retaining talent, a prospect that is a double-edged sword for Cleveland.
While retaining talent develops continuity, Berry must continue acquiring younger talent for head coach Kevin Stefanski to develop and meet salary cap requirements.
With just six draft picks in 2024, Cleveland relied heavily on signing veteran free agents and re-signing players from the 2023 team to compose this season’s roster.
It should come as no surprise that Cleveland ranks among the oldest teams in the AFC as the team built a roster to compete this year for a second consecutive playoff appearance and an AFC North championship.
Using online team rosters on Memorial Day weekend, the Browns unofficially are the fourth-oldest team in the AFC with an average age north of 26 years old, ranking just behind Buffalo, Houston, and Jacksonville.
Cleveland has 12 players who are 30 years or older on this year’s roster, and Amari Cooper will join that list next month.
The Browns and the Texans both have a dozen tricenarians on their roster, tying for the lead in this category.
Having a veteran group surrounding quarterback Deshaun Watson is important to allow the offense a chance to succeed in new coordinator Ken Dorsey’s first season on the job.
Defensively, coordinator Jim Schwartz has the core of his unit back from 2023, a fact that should help the Browns continue to succeed in 2024.
With an aging roster, the Browns need to pounce on their opportunities to chase an AFC North crown and a deep playoff run this season.
The negative aspect of an older roster is the window closes much sooner on teams like Cleveland that are long in the tooth.
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