These are the three Browns that have me worried for the Seahawks

The Browns have more talent than their 2-3 record. These are the key players that could win the game against the Seahawks. It’s not the ones you think.

The Seahawks will take the field to face the Browns in just a few minutes. Seattle is certainly living up to expectations. The same can’t be said for Cleveland. This is despite the presence of stars like Odell Beckham Jr. and Nick Chubb. For my money, Chris Carson is even better than Chubb, but there’s no denying the Browns back can be a game-changer. But I’m far less worried about those marquee names than I am a few other players in Cleveland.

To be sure, Beckham will have an impact on the game. But Jarvis Landry is the player I’m really worried about. The Dolphins had reduced him so much to the role of a safety valve, people forget just how dangerous he really is. The Browns realized this last season, as Landry’s average catch jumped from 8.8 yards to 12.0. He’s tearing it up so far in 2019, with an average of 18.3 yards per catch. He may not be as spectacular as Beckham, but he always seems to get open.

The second player that has me worried is definitely a star, but we don’t hear much about him. Defensive end Myles Garrett made the Pro Bowl last year in his second season. He’s on a pace to smash his stats from 2018. Last season he had 13.5 sacks and 29 quarterback hits. In the first five games of 2019, Garrett has seven sacks and nine quarterback hits. Over a full season that projects to 22 sacks and 29 hits. He already has half as many tackles for a loss as he did for all of last year, and projects to boost his total from 12 to 38. Both Duane Brown and D.J. Fluker are out for today’s game. I’m afraid Garrett could absolutely go off today.

The third player I expect to cause trouble for the Seahawks is a name you may not know. That would be safety Jermaine Whitehead. This is his first year as the starting strong safety for the Browns, and he’s more than measured up to the task. He easily leads Cleveland’s secondary in passer rating allowed at just 47.9 points. The Browns will need him to contain the Seahawks passing attack, as neither Greedy Williams nor Denzel Ward will be back after all.

It isn’t that I’m not worried about Chubb or Beckham. Either could wind up in the Pro Bowl. But there’s more to the Browns than the headliners. Garrett is certainly a star, but he’s somehow flown under the radar nationally. Hopefully, the Seahawks will handle all of the challenges the Browns can create.