Dec 28, 2023; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Browns tight end David Njoku (85) runs with the ball after a catch while tackled by New York Jets safety Tony Adams (bottom) during the first half at Cleveland Browns Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports
By Ben Axelrod on

As he celebrated the Cleveland Browns‘ postseason-clinching victory over the New York Jets on Thursday night, David Njoku decided to take a look at some receipts.

That included one from NFL.com’s Adam Rank, who had projected the Browns to go 6-11 during the 2023 campaign during his preseason predictions.

“I’m sure when everybody got hurt, everybody doubted us,” Njoku told reporters in the locker room following Cleveland’s latest win, which improved the Browns’ record to 11-5. “Everybody said we weren’t going to do whatever. There’s a guy, Adam Rank — that guy sucks. We hold our own fate. We pushed through. We earned that. The guys in this locker room should be proud of that, but understand that there’s a lot more that we can do.”

 

While the manner in which he made his preseason prediction was somewhat odd — he went through Cleveland’s schedule assigning wins and losses to each game without much explanation — it wasn’t necessarily out of line. The Browns entered the 2023 season with no shortage of question marks, including Deshaun Watson’s disappointing play to end the 2022 campaign and a defense that had been one of the league’s worst. Although a 6-11 prediction was on the negative side of Cleveland’s potential outcomes, it was also a defensible prediction considering the uncertainty surrounding the Browns and the difficulties of the AFC North.

That’s the thing about preseason predictions though (and why one could argue that there isn’t any upside to making them). Some are going to be right and some are going to be wrong. And it’s the latter that you’re far more likely to be remembered for.

For what it’s worth, Rank has yet to publicly react to Njoku’s comment. He did, however, appear to poke fun at his Browns prediction in a social media post promoting his Cameo account earlier this week.

[Camryn Justice on X]

About Ben Axelrod

Ben Axelrod is a veteran of the sports media landscape, having most recently worked for NBC's Cleveland affiliate, WKYC. Prior to his time in Cleveland, he covered Ohio State football and the Big Ten for outlets including Cox Media Group, Bleacher Report, Scout and Rivals.

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