The Cleveland Browns will have some tough decisions to make over the coming weeks as they try to get the roster down to 53 players.
One player who is firmly on the bubble is wide receiver/return man JoJo Natson, who landed on Bleacher Report’s list of players that should be cut before the season.
The reasons are fairly clear. The Browns are loaded at wide receiver and also have a bevy of options in the return game. There’s also the fact that Natson’s game is built around speed and he’s coming off a torn ACL he suffered early last season.
Even if Natson is at 100 percent, he has only two career receptions and isn’t going to contribute on offense. While releasing Natson would save only $874,265 in cap space, Cleveland has Super Bowl aspirations and little room for special teams-only players.
While officially listed as a wide receiver, Natson is more of a special teams ace — a role he played splendidly for the Rams in 2019. Natson returned 13 kickoffs for the Rams with an average of 22.2 yards. He also ran back 19 punts, with a 7.8-yard average.
“He’s terrifying,” Browns special teams coordinator Mike Priefer told cleveland.com. “He’s really quick. He’s the fastest guy in the field. He’s fearless for a little guy.”
Natson returned two kicks in the Browns first preseason game against the Jaguars. He totaled 12 yards on those two returns.
Rookies Demetric Felton, Anthony Schwartz Valuable for Browns
The reason Natson is disposable is really because of the skill sets of Felton and fellow rookie Anthony Schwartz, who was the fastest player in this draft class. He ran a 4.25-second 40-yard dash prior to the draft and the Browns snagged him in the third round.
Schwartz is overcoming a hamstring injury that set him back in camp, but doesn’t expect to be too far behind.
“I felt like every day I was improving, no matter what it was. Even if it was one percent, that is an improvement, and that is better than no percent. Every day I felt like I was getting better,” Schwartz told reporters. “It was unfortunate I had a little setback, but even then, I am still getting better. I am able to get mental reps, I am able to watch and visually see it and I can kind of see myself learning the same way.”
Felton Emerging as Interesting Weapon for Browns
Felton has emerged as a swiss-army knife for the Browns, capable of lining up as a wide receiver, running back and return man. That’ll likely allow the rookie sixth-round pick to make the roster and maybe even get on the field as a contributor.
“He’s done a really nice job,” Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski said early on in training camp. “He’s as advertised as a person. His coaches out there at UCLA loved him. He loves ball. He loves to compete whether it’s at wide receiver, running back or special teams. You get the sense that this kid loves to play football and loves to get the ball in his hands, which is no shock.”
Felton had four catches for 44 yards against the Jaguars. He lined up primarily as a wide receiver but is expected to see more of a running back role against the Giants.
“It is trending that way,” Stefanski said of Felton playing running back. “If everything remains the same with our receiver depth, we should be able to get him in there at running back.”
The rest of the preseason should sort out what kind of role Felton, Natson and Schwartz ultimately end up playing for the Browns. However, it appears Natson is the odd man out.
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Browns Urged to Part Ways With Wide Receiver