When Cleveland Browns rookie fourth-round running back Dylan Sampson totaled 93 yards from scrimmage and led the NFL in Pro Football Focus receiving grade in Week 1, the obvious expectation was that he would be a major part of the Browns offense moving forward. Instead, he's touched the ball only twice over the past two weeks, and only four times against the Baltimore Ravens in Week 2. Despite his ability with the ball in his hands, Sampson seems to have lost the trust of the coaching staff because of his poor pass protection, which has relegated him to a one-dimensional, low snap count player for the time being.
Against the Bengals in the season opener, Sampson played 33 snaps to Jerome Ford's 41, but had twice the amount of rushing attempts and eight times as many targets and receptions as Ford. He was extremely effective, generating 93 yards after the catch and was a crucial reason why the Browns were in position to win that game. The next week against Baltimore, Sampson's snap count fell to 18 as Ford got the lion's share of work at 35 snaps, and Quinshon Judkins made his NFL debut with 19 reps. 10 carries went to Judkins, six to Ford, and four to Sampson, while Ford was targeted six times in the passing game and both Sampson and Judkins were thrown to three times.