Which Cleveland Browns Player Is A "Must Get" In Fantasy Football?

In one month, the Cleveland Browns will be back on the field for the start of the regular season. Which offensive player is the "must get" player in fantasy football this year?

Browns tight end David Njoku (85) gets in position during minicamp, Wednesday, June 12, 2024, in Berea. / Jeff Lange / USA TODAY NETWORK

In one month, the Cleveland Browns will play host to the Dallas Cowboys in Week One of the NFL regular season. With the regular season quickly approaching, August is the month of most fantasy football drafts. As fans prepare to draft their fantasy football team, which Browns player should be the "must get" player this year?

That would be tight end David Njoku.

In ESPN's 2024 tight end rankings, Njoku is listed at No. 8. The seven tight ends ahead of him are Kansas City's Travis Kelce, Detroit's Sam LaPorta, Baltimore's Mark Andrews, Arizona's Trey McBride, Jacksonville's Evan Engram, Buffalo's Dalton Kincaid and San Francisco's George Kittle.

Feb 4, 2024; Orlando, FL, USA; AFC tight end David Njoku (85) of the Cleveland Browns makes a catch during the 2024 Pro Bowl at Camping World Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports / Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports

Behind Njoku in the rankings to round out the top 10 are Atlanta's Kyle Pitts and Dallas's Jake Ferguson. Pitts has been severely underutilized in Atlanta's offense the past few seasons, which has led to him underperforming from a fantasy football perspective. The 2024 season should be better with Kirk Cousins, yet this is all assumption.

As for Ferguson, he has established himself as the top tight end with the Cowboys. Despite securing 71 receptions for 761 yards and five touchdowns in 2023, trusting him to repeat this again and consistently provide 10 or more fantasy points per week might be risky. Dallas should be fairly pass-heavy this year due to a weak running back room on paper. CeeDee Lamb will command a lion's share of the targets, while Brandin Cooks, Jalen Tolbert and Ferguson should get a lot of the other targets. The potential is there, but personally I don't fully trust Ferguson to be a regular starting tight end yet.

So why is David Njoku being deemed a "must get" for 2024?

In 2023, he led the Browns in receptions with 81 and was targeted 123 times. Those receptions led to 882 yards and six touchdowns. Some of this production is thanks to Joe Flacco towards the end of the regular season, but even if Njoku's numbers go down a bit this season, he will still be a threat in the red zone. In 2022, Njoku caught 58 passes but still managed to have four touchdowns. He also had four touchdowns in 2021 with only 36 receptions. As long as he stays healthy this season, the veteran's floor appears to be about four touchdown receptions.

An elite trait that Njoku has displayed compared to most other tight ends in the league is his ability to pick up yards after the catch. His physicality combined with decent speed is an asset. Kevin Stefanski has utilized that by drawing up screens for Njoku. One or two of those per game gains some easy fantasy football points with another reception and some added yards.

Dec 17, 2023; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Browns tight end David Njoku (85) runs the ball as Chicago Bears cornerback Jaylon Johnson (33) tackles him around the legs during the fourth quarter at Cleveland Browns Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Scott Galvin-USA TODAY Sports / Scott Galvin-USA TODAY Sports

If you come up on the clock in your fantasy football draft and do not have a tight end, yet the likes of Kelce, LaPorta, Andrews, McBride, Engram, Kincaid and Kittle are gone, do not pass up on Njoku. The risk of a drop-off is too great after this point.

With some uncertainty on what Deshaun Watson will provide statistically and when Nick Chubb will return, these two players are not as high on the lists at their respective positions. At the wide receiver position, Amari Cooper is an asset but he typically never commands the volume of targets that many other No. 1 wide receivers do for their respective teams.

David Njoku should truthfully be the top fantasy football priority this year when it comes to players from the Cleveland Browns.