Dawgs By Nature
The QB position is still unsettled, so could Cleveland take a page from 1985 and build a run-first offense in 2025?
The Cleveland Browns headed into the 1985 season with questions on offense.
After making the ill-fated decision to move on from quarterback Brian Sipe, the offense struggled with Paul McDonald running the show. The Browns averaged just 15.6 points per game, scored 17 or fewer points 10 times, and finished with a 5-11 record.
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In an attempt to remedy the situation, the Browns brought in veteran quarterback Gary Danielson and paired him with rookie Bernie Kosar. Head coach Marty Schottenheimer and offensive coordinator Joe Pendry then made the crucial decision to install a run-first offense so they did not have to rely too much on the quarterbacks.
There were some rough spots along the way, especially during a four-game losing streak where the Browns only scored a total of 46 points. But in the end, the Browns fielded a pair of 1,000-yard running backs in Kevin Mack and Earnest Byner, and Danielson and Kosar did enough on offense to help the team earn a playoff spot as champions of the AFC Central Division.
Fast forward 40 years, and the Browns find themselves in a similar situation.
In the veteran quarterback role is Joe Flacco, with Kenny Pickett waiting in the wings, while the rookie portion is filled by Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders. Cleveland also added running backs Quinshon Judkins and Dylan Sampson in the 2025 NFL Draft.
Flacco (age) and Pickett (mediocrity) both have their limitations, while Gabriel and Sanders are still unproven at the NFL level. And all four of those quarterbacks have played in a different style of offense, which can make it difficult to build a consistent approach when the Browns have the ball.
So, with a pair of rookie running backs and what, if healthy, can be an effective offensive line, should head coach Kevin Stefanski turn back the clock and go with a run-heavy offense this fall to minimize the importance of whichever quarterback is on the field?
That is a path that may be worth considering, according to ESPN’s Bill Barnwell, who last week took a look at the offseason work of each AFC team:
The other way to think about things might be more reasonable for this version of the Browns: build a team in which the quarterback means as little as possible. The best versions of Stefanski’s Cleveland offenses had a great running game with Nick Chubb and a strong offensive line. But with Chubb sidelined and limited the past two seasons by a serious knee injury, and the line battling injuries and inconsistent play, the designed run game ranked 19th in EPA per play over that span.
Adding Quinshon Judkins and Dylan Sampson in April’s draft should give the Browns the most athletic runners they’ve had since pre-injury Chubb. The Browns might want to build their offense...
