The Opening Drive 11/7: Make Dylan Sampson Matter Again
The Browns have to find some kind of contributing role for their second running back.
As the Browns launch the second half of their season Sunday, the challenges for the offense feel immense. Through the first eight games, they have the league’s lowest EPA/play and the success rate matches the issues they are having in both phases. The role is now in the hands of Tommy Rees from a play-calling standpoint and when you look at where the Browns must improve, it boils down to using weapons more effectively and focusing on players over plays. Get the ball to your talent and let them flourish.
In Week 1, Dylan Sampson had an immediate impact in both phases. While the Browns didn’t run the ball all too well, he was a big part of the passing game and his work in the open field showed a player who can make defenders miss and turn short distance touches into meaningful gains.
Kevin Stefanski spoke about the output from Sampson in that first game. “Yeah, I thought he did a nice job. You know, we’ve all talked about these young players this is their first game, and there’s going to be jitters and all those types of things that go with it. And I expect all these guys, the young guys in particular, to get better with every game. And I thought Dylan (Sampson) did a nice job. He was out there because we trust him. He has the ability in the run and the pass game to affect the game. But it’s all things like you mentioned that we’ve seen in practice.”
After that season opener, when the Browns got the football into Sampson’s hands 20 times for 93 yards, they have let him become an absent piece of the puzzle. In Week 2 he touched the ball seven times but mostly in garbage time. They took a role for the young running back, that was built on getting him the ball in space, and reduced it to clean up work.
While we all understand the Browns have to keep getting the ball to Quinshon Judkins, it does not mean Sampson has to be deemed irrelevant. For the complimentary role alongside Judkins to work, they have to be creative and they need to find that balance in the role to keep defenses from knowing what is coming.
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The debut from Sampson, which included getting him outside on run concepts, in the slot for a couple routes, and then a key part of motion usage was an ideal fit. This was the role I envisioned for him when they took him out of Tennessee. Despite a lack of ideal pass game opportunity in college, he had the tools to do it.
Tommy Rees spoke on it following the performance from Sampson in the opener. “Yeah, I’ll give a lot of credit to our coaches on that one. That was definitely part of the developmental part with Samp when he got here, trying to work those things, find ways. You know, we want our best players on the field and usually at running back, there’s one of those guys, a little bit like quarterback. But if we can find different roles and different ways for him to impact the game, that’s impactful. Like the run game we just discussed, I don’t know how many like wide or swing routes we threw to Samp that are turned up into nine, 10, 11-yard gains that became kind of pseudo runs. Just different ways to get them involved when things aren’t clicking as much as you’d want them to.
The problem is that from there, and upon Judkins return, the Browns started to distance themselves from using Sampson in any meaningful way. From Weeks 3-7 Sampson barely found snaps (45 total across those weeks) but he started to see more action in Week 8, largely because Judkins left early with a shoulder injury.
The challenge for Rees will be finding ways to incorporate him into the offense alongside Judkins in a meaningful way. The relationship with Jerome Ford is ending after the year so spend time developing Sampson for the role that matters in the future. Put him in the slot against linebackers, get him into space for choice routes out of the backfield, get him into the screen game. The offense felt the need to draft him, a second running back inside the same draft they spent a premium asset on another back, so use him accordingly.
I see Sampson as a litmus test of sorts. If the current staff cannot find some ways to unlock his talents in the coming nine games, then we know all we need to know. This is about developing a talented player, but also getting the most out of your offense. Find a way.
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