Cleveland Browns wide receiver Jarvis Landry waits for his opportunity during a pass/catch drill during OTAs May 23, 2018 in Berea. Joshua Gunter, cleveland.com(Joshua Gunter)
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Our position rankings for the AFC North continue, as we have now covered both the quarterback and running back positions.
The Browns have changed the narrative with their skill-position talent coming into 2019, but the division pillars still have their own threats.
Let's see how they stack up in the wide receiver rankings:
Willie Snead brings veteran experience to the Ravens wide receiver group. (Sept. 29, 2018 - Source: Joe Sargent/Getty Images North America)
4. BALTIMORE RAVENS
Projected starters: Willie Snead, Marquise Brown, Miles Boykin, Chris Moore
Mike Clay's 2019 Projections: Snead (52 catches, 592 yards, 2 TDs), Brown (47 catches, 689 yards, 3 TDs), Boykin (31 catches, 431 yards, 2 TDs), Moore (10 catches, 118 yards, 1 TD)
The Ravens wide receiver group has some big question marks. Gone are veterans John Brown and Michael Crabtree, and outside of Willie Snead, the group is one the NFL's least experienced.
Snead brings steady middling production and blocks well in the Ravens' run-heavy scheme, but he lacks the big play threat others in the division have at the top of their depth chart.
With the selection of Oklahoma's Marquise "Hollywood" Brown in the first round of this year's draft, the Ravens committed to giving quarterback Lamar Jackson a big-play threat on the outside. Brown was one of college football's most explosive players at Oklahoma working with both Baker Mayfield and Kyler Murray.
After Snead and Brown, the cupboard gets bare. Chris Moore had just 19 catches in 2018.
Miles Boykin, the Ravens' third-round selection out of Notre Dame, was one of the NFL's best athletes for his massive size (6-foot-4, 220) at the NFL combine. He will be a long-term project for the Ravens coaching staff.
JuJu Smith-Schuster is the new leader of the Pittsburgh receiving core (Sept. 8, 2018 - Source: Joe Robbins/Getty Images North America)
3. PITTSBURGH STEELERS
Projected starters: JuJu Smith-Schuster, Donte Moncrief, James Washington, Diontae Johnson
Mike Clay's 2019 Projections: Smith-Schuster (103 catches, 1,308 yards, 9 TDs), Moncrief (53 catches, 708 yards, 5 TDs), Washington (45 catches, 630 yards, 4 TDs), Johnson (28 catches, 354 yards, 1 TD)
Losing a future Hall of Fame talent in Antonio Brown hurts, but the cupboard is far from bare in Pittsburgh.
Pittsburgh's offense is keen on developing receiving talent, as Brown was a sixth-round selection in 2010. Next up is JuJu Smith-Schuster, who was selected late in the second round in 2017.
Smith-Schuster followed up an impressive rookie season with 1,426 yards in year two, and looks to be the ideal fit as the No. 1 option with Brown's departure to Oakland.
Behind Smith-Schuster the options become less stable. The Steelers signed well-traveled veteran Donte Moncrief, who will be on his third team in three years and will likely be the second option.
James Washington, a highly talented receiver from Oklahoma State who the Steelers selected in the second round of the 2018 draft, will have every chance to seal that secondary role throughout camp and preseason and had some flashes in his rookie year.
Diontae Johnson from the University of Toledo, whom the Steelers selected in the third round, will be fighting for snaps. He likely slots into the fourth role for Pittsburgh, fighting against Eli Rogers.
This group was special with both Brown and Smith-Schuster but takes big steps back without a talent like Brown. Pittsburgh will still throw the ball plenty, so the group will have to find production from somewhere behind Smith-Schuster or the Steelers will struggle offensively.
An emerging second wide receiver will be paramount to their offensive success in 2019.
A.J. Green and the Bengals beat the Browns at FirstEnergy Stadium in 2017.(Joshua Gunter, cleveland.com)
2. CINCINNATI BENGALS
Projected starters: A.J. Green, Tyler Boyd, John Ross, Alex Erickson
Mike Clay's 2019 Projections: Green (85 catches, 1,248 yards, 7 TDs), Boyd (79 catches, 944 yards, 4 TDs), Ross (27 catches, 311 yards, 3 TDs), Erickson (5 catches, 59 yards)
The Bengals have issues on the roster, but skill-position talent is not one of them.
The A.J. Green and Tyler Boyd duo is one NFL's best, and both figure to have big seasons if the quarterback play can meet their needs.
Green only played nine games in 2018, and only has one full season in his last three, but when healthy he is an elite talent.
Tyler Boyd burst onto the scene last year with 76 catches, 1,048 yards, and seven touchdowns and figures to be a tough handle opposite Green. He can play both inside and outside, and his presence has to be accounted for on each snap.
John Ross, the No. 9 selection in the 2017 draft, has only started 11 games in his career, but if he took strides in 2018 with seven touchdowns and is known for his elite top-end speed. If he figures out his approach, he can become a threat the Bengals would welcome on the outside.
The Bengals will need their wide receiver group to make big plays weekly to compensate for average quarterback play, and one of the NFL's worst offensive lines.
Antonio Callaway tried to outrun Oakland's Gareon Conley to the end zone during the 2018 Week 4 match-up in Oakland. (Joshua Gunter, cleveland.com)
1. CLEVELAND BROWNS
Projected starters: Odell Beckham Jr., Jarvis Landry, Antonio Callaway, Rashard Higgins
Mike Clay's 2019 Projections: Beckham Jr. (92 catches, 1,244 yards, 10 TDs), Landry (74 catches, 908 yards, 5 TDs), Callaway (29 catches, 403 yards, 3 TDs), Higgins (18 catches, 259 yards, 2 TDs)
The Browns run four-deep at the position, and this group could have top-five overall talent in the league at the position for 2019.
Odell Beckham arrives in his prime and will only help bolster a wide receiver group that took off with Mayfield in the second half of 2018 and led the NFL in yards per catch for Weeks 9-17.
Landry slides into his comfortable role as a secondary target, where his targets will be down but his efficiency likely improves. and both Beckham and Landry have inside and outside alignment capabilities.
Antonio Callaway can use his best trait, his speed, to stretch defenses vertically, and he will be a threat each snap he aligns. His deep speed with Rashard Higgins' versatility allows the Browns to confidently use four receivers on any given snap or rotate the four to keep their legs fresh.
Freddie Kitchens' offense should be able to attack on the perimeter as well as any in the NFL and should prove the best in the AFC North.
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