After finishing the 2024 season as one of the league’s worst offenses, the Browns are making some schematic changes in a transitional year for their running and passing game.
Cleveland is planning to return to an earlier iteration of Kevin Stefanski‘s scheme, according to ESPN’s Daniel Oyefusi, with a stronger emphasis on running the ball from under center to open up the play-action passing game.
The Browns used more under-center formations in the first few years of Stefanski’s tenure as head coach and regularly posted top-10 rushing numbers. They moved to more shotgun looks after the acquisition of Deshaun Watson in 2022 and the running game suffered as a result, dipping to 19th in 2023 and 29th in 2024. (Injuries to Cleveland’s offensive linemen and running backs also played a role in their rushing regression.)
Stefanski has also dialed up play action less frequently in recent years. In 2020, his first year at the helm, the Browns’ 29.4% play-action rate ranked eighth in the league, per Next Gen Stats (subscription required). Since then, their highest rank was 19th in 2023 with a 25.1% play-action rate. A heavier usage of under-center runs will naturally provide a foundation off of which Cleveland can build more play-action concepts.
The Browns’ four-man quarterback room has varying amounts of experience with this type of offense. Joe Flacco, a 17-year veteran, is no stranger to adapting to new schemes after playing for three teams in the last three years and five in the last six, including a 2023 stint in Cleveland. Flacco has also spent plenty of time operating from under center and pushing the ball downfield off of play action dating back to his days in Baltimore.
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teelers had a strong under-center running game during Kenny Pickett‘s tenure as a starter, but his play-action rate in Pittsburgh across the 2022 and 2023 seasons was just 16.7%, per Pro Football Focus (subscription required). That ticked up to 23.5% in Philadelphia last year, though the Eagles primarily used a shotgun spread system. Pickett said (via Oyefusi) that he is familiar with many of the Browns’ concepts and is more focused on learning the new terminology.
Rookies Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders both have experience with RPOs and play action, but the vast majority of their college snaps came out of the shotgun. Their adjustment to the Browns’ under-center operation is another reason that neither is likely to win the starting job out of training camp.
Regardless of their move back to Stefanski’s previous scheme, the Browns will need better quarterback play on a fundamental level to improve their passing game, though more robust under-center rushing attack could certainly help take some pressure off of the air attack. Cleveland’s changes this year will also be subject to next offseason’s roster moves, which are expected to include an early quarterback selection in the 2026 draft.
What are things horrible organizations do for a thousand, Alex. You might have wanted to discuss if a QB fit before you paid him 230 million. But minor details.
I suppose Stefanski has to try something but this scheme change isn’t going to put opposing defenses at any disadvantage. They’ll be able to adjust to the Browns play action setup quite quickly.
They’re just playing to what strength they have (at least in comparison). You wouldn’t want your unsettled QB throw forty times a game.
Flacco built a lot of his success like this in his early career, and Pickett has only played extensive time with a heavy run scheme. The rookies aren’t NFL ready yet in all likelihood, and I’d bet that Stefanski feels more comfortable in this scheme. They only really adjusted for Watson.
The hurdle here is that Cleveland, when they did this successfully, had Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt running the ball. They did it behind a well performing offensive line. Not to mention, Mayfield is a good QB who was throwing to Jarvis Landry and Odell Beckham, who at least had to be accounted for over the top by opposing defenses. Hard hitters like Chubb and Hunt were even better if the box was light, and the receivers had more YAC room if they weren’t.
The Browns, I expect, will do better, but how much better is going to depend on large part on how successful the rushing attack will be without two workhorses in the backfield.
I suspect that the Browns will be playing catch up in almost all the games they play so they’ll probably have to abandon the run game and throw 40 passes a game anyway.
If any NFL team was going to implore fan play calling like they did in the XFL, this is the team to do it. No coaches, just buttons on the armrests of seats. Majority wins and the play goes right to the QB’s helmet. Couldn’t possibly be much worse.
Since they came back to Cleveland in 1994 this has to be the worst run franchise in probably the history of sports lol