Watson underwent surgery in late November and has made good progress since. He has yet to be cleared to throw, which will be an important milestone for him to hit. Watson still expects to be fully ready for training camp and could potentially participate in OTAs.

Although Dorsey was fired by the Bills midway through the 2023 season, he is largely recognized as one of the main factors behind the ascension of quarterback Josh Allen into a perennial MVP candidate. Due to suspension and injuries, Watson has played in just 12 regular-season games for Cleveland since being traded by Houston in 2022, and when he has played, the 2017 first-round pick has struggled under Stefanski's offensive scheme. With Dorsey brought in to help reimagine the Browns' offense, Jones posits that as long as Watson remains healthy, the 28-year-old quarterback out of Clemson could regain the form he had as a three-time Pro Bowl selection with the Texans.

Hopkins spent time with the Commanders and Chargers between the 2021 and 2022 seasons, appearing in 22 out of a possible 34 regular-season games during that span and posting a solid 88.6 percent success rate on field-goal attempts. The veteran then settled in after being traded from the Chargers to the Browns just before the start of last season, making a career-best 91.7 percent of his field-goal tries, including a career-long 58-yard field goal. The impressive efficiency earned the veteran kicker a three-year, $15.9 million extension, giving him a substantial raise over the $2.88 million he was slated to earn in 2024 under his prior deal.

Watson's first two seasons with the Browns have been a profound disappointment relative to his fully guaranteed $230 million contract. However, assuming the shoulder injury that cut short the quarterback's 2023 campaign is behind him, Brooks sees Watson bouncing back due to the talent he demonstrated earlier in his career, the fact he's still in his prime entering his age-28 season, and the playmakers he'll have surrounding him on offense.

Ford saw reps at wide receiver during drills due to several skill position players -- including Amari Cooper, David Njoku and Jerry Jeudy -- being absent at different stages of offseason practice. Given he finished the 2023 regular season with 44 catches for 319 yards and five touchdowns, Ford could be utilized in the passing game out of the backfield or spread out wide in the scheme of new offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey. Ford emerged as the lead back for the Browns last season after Nick Chubb went down in Week 2, with the former leading the team with 204 carries for 813 yards and five touchdowns.

Despite catching passes from four different quarterbacks in 2023, Njoku finished with a career-best 81 catches on 123 targets for 882 yards and six touchdowns across 16 regular-season games. While he led all tight ends last season with nine drops, he also led the position with 247 yards after contact. The eighth-year tight end found particular success with Joe Flacco toward the end of 2023, and with Deshaun Watson returning from shoulder surgery, Njoku should remain heavily involved in the passing game alongside wide receivers Amari Cooper, Elijah Moore and Jerry Jeudy.

The Browns backfield is crowded, with Jerome Ford, Nick Chubb and Nyheim Hines all locked into spots if they are healthy. There's no guarantee either of the latter two will be, however, as they are both recovering from knee surgeries. In the event all three are ready by Week 1, Strong and Foreman will be battling for the final roster spot. Strong is younger and offers special-teams value, which could give him an edge in that fight, but Cleveland presumably signed Foreman for a reason.

Jerome Ford is locked into one spot in the backfield, and Nick Chubb and Nyheim Hines are also assured spots if they're healthy by Week 1. That could leave Foreman and Strong fighting for the last opening, with Strong's special-teams value potentially giving him an edge. As such, Foreman might need one of Chubb or Hines to begin the season on injured reserve to make the Browns' 53-man roster.

The standout defender already enters the 2024 season as the reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year after recording 14 sacks and tying a career high with four forced fumbles in 16 regular-season games last year. Edholm states that Garrett's unquestioned ability, Deshaun Watson's uncertain outlook after a rocky first two seasons in Cleveland, and the fact the Browns defense should remain one of the league's best this coming season as his reasoning for making Garrett the favorite for the award.

Reuter's exercise entailed teams starting from scratch and picking from the entire pool of active NFL players to build the best team for 2024. The first 14 players taken were quarterbacks, then Garrett came off the board, indicating that Reuter views the star pass rusher as the league's most impactful non-quarterback player. Garrett was named the NFL's Defensive Player of the Year last season while posting 14 sacks, marking the sixth consecutive season in which the edge rusher reached double digits in sacks.

The $35 million that Mike Evans received from the Buccaneers in early March on a two-year extension figures to be the floor for what Cooper would find acceptable, but Calvin Ridley got $50 million in guarantees from the Titans a week later on a four-year deal, and the wide receiver market has hardly cooled down since then. Cooper has been impressive during his two years in Cleveland, catching 150 passes for 2,410 yards and 14 touchdowns in 32 regular-season games, and his 17.4 yards per reception in 2023 was a career high.

Amari Cooper was away from the team while seeking a new contract extension while Jerry Jeudy missed time with an undisclosed injury, opening up reps for other wideouts. Tillman was the one to take the most advantage, as he built chemistry with quarterback Deshaun Watson while demonstrating better habits in the weight room and in team meetings. Cooper, Jeudy and Elijah Moore seem locked into the top three spots on the depth chart, but Tillman, a third-round pick in 2023, could make a push for a bigger role in training camp.

Watson has adhered to a strict recovery schedule laid out by Dr. Neal ElAttrache, which has limited him to throwing every other day. He may still have some limitations at the start of training camp, but the goal remains that Watson be ready to play in Week 1 against the Cowboys. Watson closed minicamp by participating in 7-on-7 drills, his most significant activity since suffering the injury.

Cooper didn't participate in Cleveland's mandatory minicamp in an effort to secure a long-term extension. He has no guaranteed money as he enters the final year of his current contract and will be looking to take advantage of a booming wide receiver market. Both general manager Joe Berry and quarterback Deshaun Watson have spoken glowingly about Cooper in recent days, suggesting that a deal will ultimately be reached.

The reigning Defensive Player of the Year took the 45-14 loss particularly hard given how poorly a defensive unit that had been considered elite performed. Garrett notes he envisions a Lombardi Trophy as the ultimate path to redemption for the team in 2024, saying, "That's were my eyes are only."

Cooper attended Cleveland's OTA sessions earlier in the offseason but will miss mandatory sessions as he seeks a new deal. He's entering the final year of his current contract, which has an average annual value around 20th highest at the wide receiver position. This could be Cooper's final chance for a big, multi-year commitment from a team, so he'll likely be prepared to endure any fines as he awaits a lucrative extension.

Watson's inclusion on Shook's list of players facing pivotal 2024 seasons is wholly unsurprising, considering the veteran's fully guaranteed $230 million deal and his lackluster play since signing that contract. Moreover, Watson will also turn 29 just a few days after the Browns' season-opening game and is coming off a shoulder surgery that cut short a mostly lackluster six-game 2023 season, leaving him with plenty to prove in order to ensure he retains his starting job for the long term.

Chubb's severe knee injury required a pair of surgeries to repair his MCL and ACL. He was Cleveland's clear lead back before suffering the injury, but the Browns have plenty of contingency plans in place should Chubb still be working his way up to speed when the 2024 regular season begins. Jerome Ford filled in capably after Chubb went down in 2023, and the Browns signed free agent running backs D'Onta Foreman and Nyheim Hines, the latter of whom is recovering from an ACL tear of his own.

Hines joined the Browns on a one-year deal in March, and he will be part of a backfield that is led by Nick Chubb, who himself is recovering from two surgeries to repair multiple injuries in his left knee. If Hines is ready to go for training camp, he'll compete against D'Onta Foreman, Jerome Ford and Pierre Strong for the primary backup spot behind Chubb. In his last full season in 2022, Hines accumulated 274 yards and two touchdowns on 54 touches while returning two kickoffs for touchdowns.

Head coach Kevin Stefanski will still call plays this season, but Dorsey, a one-time NFL quarterback, will be heavily involved with Watson. The Browns have a massive and fully guaranteed investment in Watson for years to come, so the hope is Dorsey, who helped significantly with Josh Allen's development over the last few seasons in Buffalo, can have a similarly positive effect with the Browns' veteran signal-caller.

Emerson was quietly effective in 2023, as he led the Browns with four interceptions and ranked fourth among NFL cornerbacks with at least 650 snaps with a 53.3 passer rating allowed. A penchant for penalties kept Emerson from ascending to the elite tier of players at his position, but if he can clean those up in his third NFL season, Emerson could be poised for stardom.

McLeod was a depth piece for the Browns on defense last year while also serving a significant role on special teams before his 2023 season was ended prematurely by a biceps injury. He re-signed in Cleveland this offseason for what will be the final year of a 13-year career. McLeod's best season came in 2016 when he posted 83 total tackles, seven passes defensed and three picks in his first year with the Eagles.

Watson hadn't resumed throwing as of the beginning of April, so this development is an indicator of further progress in his recovery from November shoulder surgery. The Browns may opt to take a cautious approach with their starting quarterback in OTAs and minicamp, but Watson remains on track to be fully healthy well before the 2024 season kicks off.

Chubb reduced his salary cap hit for the coming season by nearly $10 million with the restructured deal, ensuring he'll be with the team this coming season. However, Chubb is far from certain to be ready for Week 1 due to the serious knee injury he suffered in Week 2 of last season, meaning Ford could still open the new campaign as the lead back.

Per ESPN's Adam Schefter, the reworked deal reduces Chubb's salary cap hit from $15.85 million to $6.28 million in 2024, but it still allows him to earn up to an additional $12.2 million for hitting certain statistical thresholds. The restructuring of Chubb's deal was largely necessitated by the serious knee injury he suffered in Week 2 of last season, which required two surgeries to repair damage to his medial capsule, meniscus, MCL and ACL.

A first-round pick in 2021, Newsome moved into the slot cornerback role last season and allowed a strong 60.5 QB rating in coverage, and the coaching staff was pleased with his development. Newsome is set to make $2.4 million in 2024, and would have a salary of $13.38 million in 2025 if the option is exercised.

Watson underwent surgery in late November and has made good progress since. He has yet to be cleared to throw, which will be an important milestone for him to hit. Watson still expects to be fully ready for training camp and could potentially participate in OTAs.