The Browns have little room for error. As the 2024 season showed, if the Browns just defeated a pair of beatable opponents early in the year, they would've played meaningful football much later into the season. Instead, they won just three games. A similar dynamic could be on the table for this season.
Worse, they are counting on significant contributions from this rookie class, no one more than Judkins.
If the Browns are once again playing out the string in a series of meaningless, lifeless games, ownership may decide they've had enough, opting to clean house. While the reasons for making that move would certainly be larger than this single incident, the arrest and potential suspension of Judkins could end up playing a role in getting both Stefanski and Berry fired. In that scenario, it would be reasonable to describe the Judkins suspension as the last straw.
Should the regime survive the year, either by the grace of an owner that wants this regime to work, the team overperforms expectations or both, player behavior is just one more element this team needs to get right. An item on an already daunting list.
So much focus is going to be on what is likely to be a quarterback selection next year. Still, the incidents with Hall and now Judkins make a fine point just how much this team is betting on players, regardless of who is making the selections for the Cleveland Browns next year.