Cleveland Browns 2027 Week One Roster Prediction - Running Backs/Fullback

The Draft

This chart shows the ages of the draft class at the time of the draft. Greens signifies the age of 66% of the prospects they have drafted in this range, yellow 33% and red is an age they have never taken in this range. So while it is unlikely they select a red player, it isn't impossible.

OBR VIP's can see my full November draft board with each position on it here.

Conclusion

It was a deeply unpopular opinion during the past offseason but I think Judkins is a really good but not great back. This season I have been more impressed with his play in the receiving game than the run game. Unless we see improvement across the rest of the season then I would be looking to a running back by committee setup. I believe the Browns will be more likely to run it back and hope they can get more out of him next year once they fix the run blocking and he is fully healthy. We have seen with Estime, the back is only part of the difference, run blocking is the bigger factor once he joined a new team.

Sampson is a much more dynamic, while it has been three games he seems to be able to do much more when on the field. His running, receiving and pass blocking appear to be so much better. I wonder if we will see him continue to out snap Judkins over the coming weeks. He might not replace him as the first back out there but that doesn't mean he can't get more snaps.

With the third back they have a nice player in Sanders. If it was just his offensive play you would make it an easy decision to move on from him as he is a minor role player. Where his value comes is the special teams and the return game. I'm not opposed to upgrading him. If they want to keep the main two and not invest in free agency, then adding a high day three draft pick could be a smart move to see if you can find a cheap answer.

There is a natural reaction for people to dislike having a fullback on the roster as some waste but I am in agreement with Tony Grossi that there can be real benefit. If you don't have a fullback you are probably carrying an additional linebacker as it is effectively a special teams role. A depth linebacker is unlikely to play any defensive snaps and only appear on special teams. I would rather have someone playing 14% of offensive snaps instead of no defensive snaps. Burton is a really good special teams contributor as well as a tremendous pass blocker. He will be 35 by the time the next season starts so they will certainly be considering other younger options too.

If they decide to go down the free agency route, even bringing someone in like Tony Pollard so he can't do anymore damage against them, it would be interesting to see what they do with the room. They might not make a move straight away but you could look to trade Judkins nearer week one rather than bury him as the third running back on the depth chart. While you could make moves through the draft, starting running backs only cost $5-10m in free agency, so you can buy a proven player and spend the draft picks on players who are expensive or unavailable in free agency.

Final 53

Quinshon Judkins
Dylan Sampson
Raheim Sanders
Michael Burton