by It’s hard not to hear about the hype surrounding the Cleveland Browns team as we inch closer to training camp. Most of the hype has been centered around the offense, with the addition of Odell Beckham Jr.
Working alongside Beckham are players like Jarvis Landry, Antonio Callaway and Rashard Higgins.
James Jones, a former Green Bay Packers wide receiver and current NFL analyst for NFL.com wrote an article earlier this week explaining how he believes the duo of Beckham and Landry is the best one-two punch in the league.
Here’s a brief stat Jones mentions that makes these two receivers one of the best in the league at getting open.
“According to Next Gen Stats, OBJ has averaged 2.6 yards of separation from the nearest defender against press coverage since 2016, the most in the NFL (among those with a minimum of 50 press targets), while Landry’s 2.3 yards of separation per press target ranks third.”
Other duos like Adam Thielen and Stefon Diggs, Tyreek Hill and Sammy Watkins, DeAndre Hopkins and Will Fuller, A.J. Green and Tyler Boyd are others to keep in mind when comparing the best one-two punch in the league.
But in Cleveland, it’s much more than just Beckham and Landry. Insert second-year player Antonio Callaway, a player who racked up 43 catches, to go along with 586 receiving yards and five touchdowns. Here’s a player who’s stats didn’t paint the whole picture a year ago. He was sort of thrown into the fire early on, but also learned what it takes to become a great wide receiver in the NFL.
Callaway is more confident than ever entering his second professional season and working on his change of direction the most this offseason in Gainesville, Fla., the 22-year-old is ready to take the next step forward lining up opposite of Beckham Jr.
The trio of Beckham, Landry and Callaway certainly draw your attention, but so does the trio of Keenan Allen, Mike Williams and Travis Benjamin. How about the Rams’ receiver core of Brandin Cooks, Robert Woods and Cooper Kupp, setting up arguably the best trio in the game today. The Falcons also have a strong say in that title with players like Julio Jones, Calvin Ridley and Mohamed Sanu.
Rishard Higgins, “Hollywood” as most fans like to call him in Cleveland, rounds out the wide receiver core for the Browns. Here’s a player that is coming off a second year where he really started to click with Baker Mayfield late in the season.
In fact, in 13 games played last season, Higgins finished the year with a total of 39 catches for 572 yards and four touchdowns on a total of 53 targets. The four touchdown catches were tied for the second-most on the team. A fifth-round pick in 2016, Higgins has proven that he belongs in Cleveland after a career year in 2018, ultimately being the driving force in him resigning with the Browns earlier in the offseason. He wants to be apart of something special in Cleveland, so be ready for a treat Browns fans.
Certainly, there will be a ton of eyes of Beckham Jr. and Landry as the two focal points within Cleveland’s receiving core, but make no mistake, the Browns have arguably the best wide receiver core four in the league and I’d put these four receivers up against any receiving core.
This group is mixed with all kinds of skill and speed that will have defenses shaken up down the field. The talent from Higgins and Callaway should not be overlooked just because Jarvis Landry and Odell Beckham Jr. are headlining Cleveland’s wide receivers.
