How Does The Loss of David Njoku Affect The Browns?

The opening weekend of the NFL regular season has already taken down a Pro Bowl tight end, with Cleveland Browns veteran David Njoku going down with a high ankle sprain on the second drive of the team’s opening loss to the Dallas Cowboys.

Njoku, who hauled in 81 catches for 882 yards and six touchdowns for Cleveland in 2023, has accumulated an approximate value of 26 in 96 NFL games, underpinning his importance to the Browns long term across Ohio sports betting.

While we still don’t know how long he’ll be out of action, it’s worth wondering how much of an impact losing Njoku long term would have on the Browns’ offense, which looked downright anemic on Sunday.

What we do know right now is that the Browns are currently listed as a 3.5-point underdog on Fanatics Sportsbook Ohio against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday, speaking to the importance of having the former first round pick on the field this weekend.

With that in mind, BetOhio.com broke down how Cleveland’s offense has fared in years past when Njoku has been unable to play, speaking to the impact that the 28-year-old has on the Browns attack.

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How Do The Browns Perform When David Njoku Is Injured?

W-L Record	Average PPG With Njoku	Average PPG Without Njoku
9-9	20.8 points	24.7 points

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Will Browns Miss Njoku Going Forward?

While there’s no doubt that Cleveland fans will wish that Njoku can still suit it up for the Browns as he recovers from his current injury, there’s reason for optimism even in his absence. That’s because Cleveland has posted a .500 record (9-9) in games that the veteran tight end has missed since entering the league in 2017, while the Browns’ points per game total with him out of the lineup (24.7 PPG) is nearly four points higher than the figure with him on the field (20.8 PPG).

Still, the Browns will sorely miss the surehanded tight end should Njoku miss considerable time, speaking to the importance of having a solid player at that position in today’s pass-first offensive world of the NFL.

Keep tabs on the Browns Super Bowl Odds all season long here at BetOhio.

USA Today photo by Scott Galvin.

Author

Christopher Boan

@cgboan

Christopher Boan writes for BetOhio.com and has been covering sports and sports betting for more than seven years, with experience at ArizonaSports.com, the Tucson Weekly and the Green Valley News.