Will the cornerbacks play improve this year and are younger players Myles Harden and Cameron Mitchell ready? – Rob M., Fairmont, West Virginia
The secondary – and specifically the cornerbacks – have high expectations for their unit during the 2025 season. As a defense, defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz wants his unit to improve their third-down percentage and their number of takeaways. During the 2024 season, the Browns totaled only four interceptions, which was ranked last in the league.
And the corners play an important role in the number of takeaways as well as third down percentage. Cornerbacks coach Brandon Lynch said the corners must stay tight in coverage to allow the rushing attack and coverage to work together, as well as serve as the “nerve center” for the linebackers and safeties to rely on and communicate with in third down situations. Then, in order to increase takeaways, Lynch said they must embody their defensive mindset.
“We want to attack first,” Lynch said. “We’re the tip of the spear, and we want to make sure that we’re forcing errors but forcing errors because we are communicating and we are executing. And when we talk about the hard and toughness, with us fighting through friction, just displaying that toughness. And then finishing for the team. Everything that we do is for the team, and those guys really work to serve. And when they are keeping the focus on that, it’s going to produce.”
Lynch has watched his unit put in the work during the offseason program through workouts and practices. He’s noticed how his players have put an added focus on the JUGS machine, catching about 50 balls per day as a segment of their routine.
It’s a unit that also has a level of depth, one that is led by Denzel Ward, Greg Newsome II and Martin Emerson Jr.. They have a veteran presence with Tony Brown II and young players like Cameron Mitchell and Myles Harden – both of whom have another year of experience in the defensive system and have an opportunity to step into larger roles in the 2025-26 season. The mix of experiences in the group gives the cornerbacks a plethora of talent to rely on in the secondary and have an increased impact in 2025.