Getty
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – NOVEMBER 23: Jerry Jeudy #3 of the Cleveland Browns warms up before a game against the Las Vegas Raiders at Allegiant Stadium on November 23, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Ian Maule/Getty Images)
A year ago, the Browns looked pretty well brilliant for the swap and contract they put forth to secure Jerry Jeudy as their top wide receiver. For the low cost of fifth- and sixth-round picks, and the relatively affordable price (by WR1 standards) of three years and $52.5 million, the Browns got a receiver who caught 90 passes for 1,229 yards and earned a Pro Bowl berth.
And he did it on a bad team that used four different subpar quarterbacks.
This year? The quarterbacks are bad again, and the team is mostly wretched–offensively, at least–but Jeudy is a long, long way from matching his 2024 production. He put up 72.3 yards per game that year, but this year, that’s down to 35.1 yards. Already 12 games into the season, Jeudy has had 35 catches for 421 yards, and is easily on pace for the worst healthy season of his career.
Jeudy has not been targeted much, at 80 times this season. But he has not caught much, either, when it has come his way. His 43.8% catch rate is the worst of his career, and down from 62.1% last year.
Browns QBs Have Not Helped Jerry Jeudy
The Browns’ quarterbacks have struggled, especially after Joe Flacco was traded and the team went with Dillon Gabriel and now, Shedeur Sanders. There are not many receivers who would thrive with that situation. Still, Jeudy seems off in a number of ways–he had a high-profile sideline argument with Sanders last week, and did not talk to reporters after the game for the first time in his Browns career.
Browns beat reporter Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com was asked about Jeudy’s showing in 2025 this week. She compared it with Vikings star Justin Jefferson and second-year quarterback JJ McCarthy.
Wrote Cabot: “I think Jeudy’s struggles this season are a direct result of the Browns’ 31st-ranked passing game and not the cause of it. It’s very similar to what Justin Jefferson, the 2022 NFL Offensive Player of the Year, is experiencing with the 4-8 Vikings right now. …
“When a team has a rookie quarterback finding his way or struggling, it’s tough on the No. 1 receiver. I don’t think Jefferson or Jeudy, a 2024 Pro Bowler, have forgotten how to play football. I think they’ll both be back to peak form when their teams get good QB play.”
GettyCleveland Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders has not had much connection with Jerry Jeudy thus far.
Browns Need a Better QB-WR Connection
That’s the trick of all this for the Browns: Finding a quarterback. The team wants to have good weapons on the field no matter who is under center, Sanders or Gabriel or someone else. But if those QBs are not good enough to feed those weapons, there figures to be frustration all around.
That’s where the Browns are. It will be incumbent on Sanders to find and deliver the ball to Jeudy down the stretch of the season, and build some rapport between the two.
Jerry Jeudy Has ‘Done a Great Job’
From the Browns’ perspective, Jeudy has been doing his job.
Said receivers coach Chad O’Shea this week: “Jerry has approached this year no different than he approached last year, and it’s been really outstanding in the way he’s approached it. And he’s done a great job of working hard, putting the team first. And there’s times that it doesn’t go his way – and that’s true of all players I would say. …
“I think Jerry’s done a good job of really trying to stay focused on his job, and as we say, ‘Our job is to get open and catch the ball, regardless of the game, the opponents, regardless of the situation.’ And that’s what we’ve encouraged Jerry to do.”
Sean Deveney is a veteran sports reporter covering the NBA, NFL and MLB for Heavy.com. He has written for Heavy since 2019 and has more than two decades of experience covering the NBA, including 17 years as the lead NBA reporter for the Sporting News. Deveney is the author of 7 nonfiction books, including “Fun City,” “Before Wrigley became Wrigley,” and “Facing Michael Jordan.” More about Sean Deveney
More Heavy on Browns
Loading more stories
