NBA superstar LeBron James has never been shy about his love for the NFL, dating all the way back to high school, when he was a dominant tight end before opting to focus on basketball full-time.
He remains one of the best Madden players in the world, so he surely keeps up with what goes on in the NFL world, and recently shared which team he believes could be the “sleeper” heading into the 2025 season.
James was recently asked who his sleeper team is for the upcoming season, and after patting himself on the back for identifying the Washington Commanders as last year’s sleeper team, he said the Cleveland Browns could be that team this year.
LeBron’s NFL predictions:
Sleeper team: Cleveland Browns
Super Bowl: Chiefs vs Eagles
MVP: Lamar Jackson pic.twitter.com/c3kjmHCuOZ
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) August 28, 2025
Cleveland has been in the headlines mostly due to its messy four-man quarterback competition, but now that the dust has settled and the Browns have landed on Joe Flacco to start Week 1, there is reason to believe the Browns could have a turnaround after last year’s dismal 3-14 campaign.
The Browns had one of the best defenses in the NFL in 2023, and after spending the fifth-overall pick on Mason Graham and nabbing stat-stuffing linebacker Carson Schwesinger in the second round to add to Myles Garrett, Denzel Ward, and a handful of other returning veterans, it’s possible the defense could be dominant once again.
Cleveland had the worst offense in the NFL last season, starting four different quarterbacks and posting the league’s worst turnover differential, but if Flacco can regain some of the fire he had when he led the Browns to the playoffs in 2023, there’s still a world where he can lead them there again.
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