Getty Kevin Stefanski with Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson.
The Cleveland Browns‘ endeavor for regular season success in 2023 is going to start and end with quarterback Deshaun Watson, though it isn’t quite that simple.
Watson had some nightmarish moments after returning from his 11-game suspension last season, which followed a full year on the sidelines in Houston due to the QB’s myriad off-field issues. Some of those on-field struggles were to be expected, even despite a healthy complement of weapons flanking Watson on the outside and in the backfield. That group of playmakers is pretty much the same this season, at least at the top of the depth chart, with one notable addition — wide receiver Elijah Moore.
Kristopher Knox of Bleacher Report on Thursday, August 17, contended that it is Moore who will be the key to unlocking Watson’s full potential this season, which is the key to unlocking a playoff run for the Browns in an absolutely brutal AFC North Division.
“The X-factor in the receiving corps is Elijah Moore, whom Cleveland acquired in an offseason trade with the New York Jets,” Knox wrote. “Moore had some bright moments as a rookie in 2021, but he saw his opportunities dwindle in New York last season. Cleveland views him as a versatile chess piece who can be moved around the formation and fill several different roles. … If Moore becomes the multi-faceted playmaker the Browns believe he can be, Watson will have a much easier time being the quarterback he was in Houston.”
Elijah Moore Reinvigorated by Fresh Start With Browns, Proving Talent During Training Camp
GettyWide receiver Elijah Moore of the Cleveland Browns figures to be an important addition to the team’s offense in 2023.
Moore’s brief NFL history doesn’t lend itself to the conclusion Knox drew above, at least not when examining the traditional counting statistics he produced in New York.
Over two years, Moore played in 27 games for the Jets and earned 15 starts. He caught just 80 passes for 984 yards and six touchdowns, per Pro Football Reference. To put that into perspective, Browns No. 1 wideout Amari Cooper made 78 grabs for 1,160 and nine TDs last year alone, which wasn’t enough to earn him what would have been the fifth Pro-Bowl nod of his career.
But as in all things, context matters. Moore was hampered by poor quarterback play and his own maturity issues in New York. The wideout has implied since his trade that he didn’t feel wanted in the Jets locker room — the exact opposite of how feels now donning the orange and brown in Cleveland.
Moore should see more passes come his way in a variety of different looks and off the hand of a three-time Pro-Bowl quarterback in Watson who, if he returns to form, is considerably better than any of Moore’s former teammates under center with the Jets.
By all accounts, Moore has been exceptional during training camp. He suffered a rib injury early in the team’s second preseason contest against the Washington Commanders on August 11, though X-rays came back negative and Moore has since returned to practice.
Browns Made Savvy Trade When Acquiring WR Elijah Moore
GettyThe Cleveland Browns acquired former New York Jets wide receiver Elijah Moore at exceptional value.
Trading for Moore was a savvy move by the Browns, who gave up a second-round pick to acquire him that, in reality, served as the higher end of a pick swap. Cleveland gave the Jets the No. 42 overall selection in exchange for Moore and the No. 74 overall pick, moving down 32 spots to acquire the versatile wideout rather than simply forfeiting a higher-end second-rounder for him.
One of the more successful free agent strategies across sports in recent years has been to go hunting for high-end draft picks (Moore was selected No. 34 overall by the Jets in 2021) with high-end skill sets who have underperformed at their first stop and are still playing on rookie contracts. Such plays tend to afford the acquiring team good trade value (Cleveland moving down 32 picks for Moore) while reinvigorating a young player with considerable potential as he enters a new system in a new atmosphere with plenty of time to straighten out his career.
Moore has two years left on his $9 million rookie contract and opens up new possibilities for a Cleveland offense that had already assembled a potent collection of skill players before Moore’s arrival. Of course, there is no guarantee that the move is going to work. But if it does, it will be hard to view Moore as anything but an X-factor expertly acquired ahead of a campaign in which the Browns must deliver to avoid sweeping changes at the top of the organization.