Former Alabama star wide receiver looks to be on a mission to prove one NFL team made a big mistake trading him

One former member of the Alabama Crimson Tide very well could be on the brink of the breakout season that he has been waiting for while in the NFL.

Jerry Jeudy was a tremendous player while at Alabama. He put up two huge seasons statistically while wearing crimson and became a first-round pick to the Denver Broncos in 2020. Jeudy has been trying to get over the hump of 1,000 yards in a season and 2024 may be the season for it.

The Cleveland Browns are a team that targeted Jeudy long before they landed him this past offseason , so assuming they have big plans for him is easy. Jeudy is a good route runner first and foremost and will be the top option alongside Amari Cooper and David Njoku for the Browns’ offense.

Jeudy is already showing what he can do with the Browns in training camp, specifically in this week’s joint practices with the Minnesota Vikings. Jeudy hasn’t had a ton of 11-on-11 action this month due to a junior injury, but that didn’t look to matter when he beat the Vikings secondary for a red zone touchdown on Thursday.

“I think they’re doing a nice job with it. Jerry runs good routes, he’s friendly for the quarterback,” Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski said of the connection Jeudy is building with QB Deshaun Watson. “So, a lot of it is the quarterback just building a book on all of his players and understanding the nuance of each one of those guys.”

Jeudy had 972 yards in 2022 in 15 games played and that is the closest that he has been to 1,000 yards. After trading for him, the Browns locked him up with a contract extension , hoping that he can hit his ceiling in their offense and help Watson be the quarterback that Cleveland needs him to be.

The former Alabama star has a tremendous opportunity in front of him and the early returns are promising. Jeudy beat a defender with a quick release on Friday, and it was just a glimpse of the route-running ability that gets you excited.

Jeudy needs to put it all together. He needs to have sure hands and be consistent. But the opportunity is at least there for him to perhaps even become the top guy for the Browns’ offense beyond this year if he can reach for it.

In the process of this all, Jeudy can make it look like a mistake for the Broncos to have traded him when this is all said and done.

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