Browns QBs only completed 57% of their passes last season
The Cleveland Browns 2023 NFL season was successful despite the play from the quarterbacks the entire season. The five starting quarterbacks combined to complete just 56.9% of their passes last season. The individual numbers tell a tale:
- Deshaun Watson: 61.4% on 171 attempts
- Joe Flacco: 60.3% on 204 attempts
- Dorian Thompson-Robinson: 53.6% on 112 attempts
- Jeff Driskel: 50% on 26 attempts
- PJ Walker: 48.6% on 111 attempts
Put them all together and Browns quarterbacks attempted 624 passes and completed just 355 of them.
For reference, the paltry offenses of the New York Jets and Carolina Panthers completed at least 59% of their passes and no other teams were below 61%.
To say that Cleveland’s passing game was not in sync is an understatement.
The explanation is as simple as the list above. Not only did the Browns have five starting quarterbacks but just two of them (Watson and Flacco) are NFL starter level and neither of them have been consistently good the last three seasons.
Not all blame goes on the quarterback, however.
Cleveland’s pass catchers were among the bottom half of the league in contributing to incompletions:
highest rate of incompletions due to receiver error:
22% – JAX
21% – LAR, TEN
20% – BAL, HOU, KC
19% – LV, SEA, MIN, DET, BUF
18% – DAL, LAC, CLE
17% – MIA, NYG, NE, DEN
16% – CIN, IND, TB, GB
15% – WAS, NO, ARI
14% – CAR, SF
13% – PHI, ATL, CHI, NYJ
12% – PIT*2023 reg season
— Warren Sharp (@SharpFootball) June 29, 2024
Four Browns pass catchers had five or more drops:
- David Njoku: 11 (tied with Tyreek Hill for second most)
- Jerome Ford: 9
- Amari Cooper: 7
- Elijah Moore: 5
While drops are frustrating, star rookie receiver Puka Nacua led the NFL with 13 drops last season.
In all, according to Pro Football Reference, 11 Cleveland pass catchers combined for 42 drops last season. As noted in the above social media post, a number of teams had receivers contribute a higher percentage to incompletions which puts most of the blame back on the Browns struggling group of quarterbacks.
Cleveland is hoping for a much better season from Watson and, if needed, Jameis Winston in 2024. A bump from the quarterback position and an improvement from the pass catchers could make a world of difference for the Browns passing game.
Are you surprised by how low the Browns completion percentage was? Does any other of the above numbers stand out to you?
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