This seems like the year the Browns finally return to respectability Youth David Njoku Jersey , if not the year they actually win. With all of the roster additions and Hard Knocks exposure, there is a lot to get excited about. So without further adieu, here are the top 5 things I am excited about as we enter the regular season1. Todd Haley and the new-look offenseWe’ve seen some success in the running game when we have made it a focus, we’ve seen RPOs, we’ve seen no-huddle, uptempo offense. We’ve seen pick routes for Jarvis Landry, seam routes for David Njoku, and back-shoulder fades to anyone who can catch them. While it’s hard to predict exactly what the week 1 offense will look like, all of the elements for an intelligent, contemporary offense are there. An perhaps most importantly, we aren’t seeing a clearly overwhelmed head coach try to manage the game and call plays from the sideline at the same time.2. Myles Damn GarrettI tried to make all 5 things, things. As in; “not individual players.” But I cannot contain my excitement about Myles Garrett.The only thing that can derail him at this point is injury. He’s already a force to be reckoned with, and he’s on his way to being one of the best pass rushers in the NFL. This is exactly what we were hoping for when we drafted him last year. If Myles continues to improve his technique to go along with his incredible blend of speed, agility, and power, he is going to be unblockable. 3. Rookie DefendersDenzel Ward showed flashes during the preseason, despite injuring his back. He’ll take a few lumps, as many rookie corners do. But he’ll also be our best corner from the first snap of the year. And when he starts to put it together, look out. Ward’s burst and willingness to come up and hit were on display during the preseason, and I am excited to see what he can do against the best of the best.But we had all heard of Ward before the draft. Someone who was an under-the-radar pick has been a surprise this preseason, and that someone is LB Genard Avery. Avery is a linebacker, but has also been lined up as a stand-up end in Gregg Williams’ defense, where he has shown off some nice burst and rush moves. His athleticism http://www.brownsauthorizedshops.com/authentic-larry-ogunjobi-jersey , hustle, and size were really eye-popping in the preseason, and I hope we continue to work him onto the field despite being a 4-3 team with 3 good linebackers in front of him. On this play, watch as Avery is lined up toward the bottom of the screen as a stand-up DE. Instead of rushing the passer, he drops into coverage on the TE as a blitz comes from the other side of the formation. Avery successfully walls off the TE, passes him to the safety, and then pursues scrambling QB AJ McCarron all the way toward the opposite sideline. Coverage, hustle, and closing speed:4. The Development of Young PlayersJabril Peppers, Brien Boddy Calhoun, David Njoku, Larry Ogunjobi, and Rashard Higgins all look like players ready to break out. After years of seeing talented young players make their way onto the Browns only to underperform, is this the year that several guys put it together?Peppers looks more comfortable in a strong safety role after playing as the “Angel” all year last year. He looks to be playing with more confidence and instinct in year 2. Someone is going to need to create penetration in the backfield and catch quarterbacks as they try to escape Myles Garrett and Ogunjobi showed flashes of becoming a 3 tech penetrator in the preseason. Everyone expects Njoku to break out as a seam-stretching TE, but Higgins has really impressed me with his continued improvement. Billed as a guy who was maybe “maxed out” in college, Higgins has somehow developed chemistry with both Tyrod Taylor and Baker Mayfield, demonstrating a knack for making plays despite his limited athleticism.If a handful of players in year 2 or 3 can step up and even become “middle class” players for the Browns, it will be a welcome sight.5. Competent QB PlayHere are DeShone Kizer’s red zone numbers from last year: 14 of 42 (33.3%) for 105 yards (2.5 yards per attempt) for 8TD, 6 INT, and 2 fumbles. If we just improve on those numbers a little bit, it would be hard not to win a few games this year. Thankfully, we should blow last year’s quarterback play out of the water.Tyrod TaylorTyrod Taylor has been exactly what the Browns have needed as a “bridge QB”. He’s a calm, low-key guy who shows up every day ready to grind. He’s not the most rah-rah guy Jarvis Landry Jersey , but he has led the Browns by example all offseason, and he’s ready to lead them on the field. Whether you think he hit his ceiling in Buffalo or that he was overly conservative out of necessity, he’s still going to be a huge improvement.Baker MayfieldThere have been a few things that haven’t surprised me about Baker Mayfield, starting with his deep ball accuracy. Despite only connecting on 57.4% of his passes this preseason, Baker has thrown for 8.2 yards per attempt. Meaning when he did connect Baker wasn’t just dumping it off. But Baker has always been an accurate deep passer, so that shouldn’t be surprising. What has been surprising to me has been the way Baker has adjusted to the NFL game. He can already be seen at the line of scrimmage making calls, checks, and signals, changing the direction of runs and commanding the offense. His pocket presence and ability to move around to buy time to deliver the ball, or escape the pocket and pick up a first down has also felt very advanced for this stage of his career. Moving forward, Baker will need to connect on a few more checkdowns in order to get that completion percentage up and to turn sacks or throwaways into gains of 2-5 yards. But he’s off to a great start.What do you think?So, Browns fans, should we be excited as we enter the regular season? Is this really the year the Browns turn things around, or will we be waiting for next year by week 4? Who or what are you excited about? Discuss in the comments below. Baker Mayfield spun out of sacks and turned them into big plays, led Cleveland to its highest-scoring game in more than a decade and showed why the Browns thought highly enough of him to make him the No. 1 overall pick in the NFL draft.Mayfield's first NFL start would have gone down as a major success if not for some untimely turnovers and a replay review that allowed the Oakland Raiders to rally for the late tying score before winning in overtime.Instead, it ended up like so many other games for the hapless Browns since they returned to the NFL in 1999.Mayfield threw for 295 yards and two touchdowns, but also committed four turnovers that helped the Raiders deny the Browns their first back-to-back wins in four years with a 45-42 overtime victory on Sunday."We turned the ball over too many times, gave them a chance," Mayfield said. "In this league, when you turn the ball over like we did today, like I did, you're not going to win those games. We saw the end result of that."Mayfield put the Browns (1-2-1) in an early hole when his pass on the second drive of the game deflected off receiver Antonio Callaway's hands and went right to Gareon Conley , who returned the interception 36 yards for a touchdown.Then he showed the big-play ability that helped him win the Heisman Trophy at Oklahoma Authentic Nick Chubb Jersey , become the No. 1 pick and convince the Browns to put him in far earlier in the season than originally planned.He got his first career TD on a 49-yard pass to Darren Fells in the second quarter and put Cleveland up 28-14 with a 2-yard strike to Jarvis Landry in the third.But then Mayfield got stripped on a sack by Maurice Hurst and fumbled a snap from JC Tretter to set up two short TD drives for the Raiders, who then built a 34-28 lead early in the fourth quarter."He's going to learn," coach Hue Jackson said. "He's got football intelligence. Today, as he goes through it, he'll understand, and we've talked about it a little bit, just how important those things are. You got to be team-protecting in certain situations, but you don't want to rein him in, because I like the things he's doing."Mayfield then showed his resiliency, connecting on a 49-yard pass to Callaway that set up Carlos Hyde's go-ahead 1-yard run. Nick Chubb added a 41-yard TD run and Mayfield seemed poised to become just the third of 30 Browns starting QBs to win his first start with the franchise since 1999 when the defense stopped the Raiders at the 9 with less than two minutes left.Hyde appeared to seal the game with a third-down conversion only to have it overturned on replay when the officials ruled his elbow touched the ground before he reached the marker."It had to be a heck of a review to turn that over on the third and short," Mayfield said. "I don't know. Any time you put it in somebody else's hands, it's not always going to turn out your way. You've got to control what you can control and execute better."That forced a punt and Derek Carr led the Raiders on a game-tying drive.Mayfield got the ball back at the 25 and completed two quick passes to move the ball into Oakland territory before his deep pass was intercepted by Reggie Nelson with 7 seconds left, forcing overtime.Mayfield got one drive in OT, but threw an incomplete pass on third down and never got another chance. He was unable to back up his comeback win in relief against the Jets that snapped Cleveland's 19-game winless streak last week with another victory."I feel bad for our defense," Mayfield said. "We gave the Raiders a chance to be on offense too many times. When you give an offense like that, with the players they have, so many chances, it's not going to turn out well for you."Despite the loss, there's plenty of reason for optimism around the Browns, who believe the two-decade search for a quarterback has finally ended."I love Mayfield," Raiders coach Jon Gruden said. "The way he plays, the confidence that he has. He got out of trouble and made some unbelievable throws under fire today. He has a bright future. Cleveland has their quarterback. They've been complaining about not having one for a while. It's pretty obvious they have one."