Two Browns make PFF’s Preseason Week 1 Team of the Week

The first week of the preseason has wrapped, and not only did the Cleveland Browns get a victory over the New York Giants, they also boasted some strong performances from individual players, particularly on offense.

Pro Football Focus compiled their Team of the Week for both offense and defense based on their Week 1 preseason grades, and two Browns made the list on the offensive side of the ball.

Tight end David Njoku, who caught two passes—both for touchdowns—on three targets and totaled 46 yards was named the week’s best tight end. Pro Football Focus gave him a 91.2 grade for the week. Left tackle Greg Robinson was the site’s top performer at his position, with an 81.8 grade. PFF’s Michael Renner wrote that, “[o]n 44 snaps against the Giants, Robinson yielded all of one hurry in an impressive outing.”

Those snap counts matter when it comes to these rankings, it should be kept in mind. Renner noted that, “making this team isn’t quite as simple as earning the highest grade at your position in a given week,” and that “[w]eighting has been given towards playing time.”

Thus, the New York Jets’ Sam Darnold was named the top quarterback of the week despite having a lower PFF grade than the Browns’ Tyrod Taylor. Darnold had 19 pass attempts to Taylor’s five, pairing a strong performance with extended playing time.

However, Taylor would have been PFF’s No. 2 quarterback of the week without playing time taken into account. Taylor graded higher than Darnold, with the Jets rookie posting an 80.8 grade to Taylor’s 86.7.