The Browns have found a real difference-maker in Denzel Boston, and ESPN’s Bill Barnwell sees the rookie wideout on a path toward the NFL’s Offensive Rookie of the Year award.
That’s a pretty sharp turn for a Cleveland offense that was hard to watch in 2025 and has already climbed to a passing grade in 2026. The Browns are 3-1 after a rough Week 1 start, and while Todd Monken deserves plenty of credit for the turnaround, the early additions from Andrew Berry have clearly changed the look of this offense. KC Concepcion and Boston are both starting and contributing at receiver, while Spencer Fano and Austin Barber have helped up front.
Boston has been the headliner. He made his first real splash in Week 1 with a 46-yard catch on a post route in garbage time, blowing past Jags cornerback Montaric Brown for his first pro touchdown.
Since then, he’s kept stacking big plays. Over his first four games, Boston has hauled in catches of 28, 55 and 60 yards.
Through the first four weeks of the 2026 season, he and Zay Flowers are the only NFL wide receivers with three catches of 45 yards or more.
Barnwell pointed to both the production and the profile that make Boston such a problem for defenses. In a league that’s always hunting for downfield weapons, Boston ranks fourth in air yards per target at 16.9 while catching nearly 60% of the passes thrown his way. That kind of combination forces defenses to respect him every snap, and he’s been a big reason the Browns have been far more effective on offense than anyone expected.
At 6’4”, the Washington product brings more than just straight-line speed. He can win in different ways, using his size to shield defenders and break tackles, while also separating enough to run away from coverage. In four games, Boston has 13 receptions for 284 yards and two touchdowns.
That yardage total already stands out in a hurry. Barnwell noted that only two receivers, Jerry Jeudy and Isaiah Bond, had more receiving yards all of last season. Boston is also tracking toward the Browns’ top pass-catching number from a year ago, with TE Harold Fannin Jr.’s 731 yards now within reach.
In Other News...
Deshaun Watson Just Gave The Browns Another Unwanted Distraction
The Browns were handed another bit of off-field clutter this week when the NFL fined Deshaun Watson and Quinshon Judkins for an illegal celebration during the game against the Steelers. The gesture, which involved pretending to smoke, drew unsportsmanlike-conduct penalties and added one more item to a season already full of noise around Cleveland.
Watson was fined $14,926 and Judkins $14,397, with the leagues decision coming before the Browns Week 5 matchup against the Jets. It is the kind of small but avoidable distraction Cleveland would rather do without, especially when every week seems to bring a fresh reminder that discipline issues can quickly become part of the larger conversation around this team. [Read more 🡒]
Todd Monken Just Hit A Nerve With Browns Fans Over Minkah Fitzpatrick
Todd Monkens latest comments landed in a part of Cleveland that still hasnt cooled off. The Browns first-time head coach was asked about the high helmet-to-helmet hit Minkah Fitzpatrick delivered on rookie KC Concepcion during the recent game against the New York Jets, and Monken called it a bang-bang play while saying Fitzpatrick is not a dirty player. It was the kind of measured answer coaches usually give in the moment, but in this case it immediately stirred up plenty of frustration from Browns fans already primed to see the play through a different lens.
Fitzpatrick was not ejected, though he is expected to be fined for the illegal contact, and that only sharpened the reaction around Monkens defense of him. For Cleveland supporters, the issue is not just the hit itself but the memory attached to the player delivering it, which made the coachs choice of words feel especially touchy in the aftermath. In a rivalry that already carries enough baggage, this was a reminder that even a routine postgame explanation can turn into its own storyline. [Read more 🡒]
Ben Roethlisberger Just Handed Browns Fans The Perfect Reminder
Ben Roethlisberger found a way to stir the pot again, even if it was in jest. On a recent podcast, the former Steelers quarterback made a joking comment that suggested he had never lost to the Browns, a line that immediately invites a fact-check in Cleveland, where the franchise has beaten Pittsburgh multiple times and owns a more recent playoff win than its old rival.
For Browns fans, the bigger takeaway might be the reminder that Pittsburghs long-standing mystique has been chipped away more than once in this matchup. Cleveland has won five straight home games against the Steelers, and Roethlisbergers uncertainty about labeling any team a true contender entering Week 5 only adds to the feeling that the AFC Norths old assumptions no longer hold up the way they used to. [Read more 🡒]