The Cleveland Browns should be leaving no stone unturned in an effort to improve their abysmal offense this offseason, and with free agency coming up, there are multiple intriguing names available, including former first-round pick Treylon Burks. Is he a player the team should take a chance on as a reclamation project, or is the juice likely not worth the squeeze?
Back in 2022, the Tennessee Titans liked A.J. Brown so much that they traded him for a first-round pick so they could try to draft the next one, which is how they ended up with Burks. After averaging over 90 yards per game and scoring 19 touchdowns over his last two seasons for the Arkansas Razorbacks, Burks fit the bill; he was a densely-built 6-foot-2 225 pounds with some impressive YAC ability. The problem was that Burks did most of his damage in college as a gadget player and by winning with superior speed and physical traits. That is really hard to do in the NFL unless you're a truly special athlete, and Burks is not. He's been unable to develop as a route runner to be able to consistently separate from NFL defensive backs, and that has led to him producing very little over his first four seasons in between injuries.
The Titans stuck with him until October of last year when they waived him and shortly after he signed with the Washington Commanders practice squad before working his way to the active roster later in the year.
Burks is hard to bring down, but his YAC ability hasn't translated to the league nearly as well as some thought it would. He'll also make some highlight-reel worthy catches, but in general hasn't been the most reliable target with a 7% drop rate on 114 career targets. He'll turn 26 soon, but there's still talent in there, and he would bring size that isn't really present in Cleveland's WR room. Should the Browns look into giving him another chance to realize his potential?