By Randy Gurzi
Jordan Kunaszyk, LB
A former undrafted free agent out of Cal, Jordan Kunaszyk joined the Browns in 2022 after spending one season with the Carolina Panthers and two with the Washington Commanders. Once in Cleveland, he wound up playing a much larger role than expected. Originally a special teams ace, Kunaszyk played in 15 games and had two starts (with 101 snaps on base defense) due to so many injuries at the linebacker position.
He finished with modest numbers, 22 tackles, a forced fumble, and a pass deflection. But he still showed off a hard-nose style of play and possesses a non-stop motor.
Heading into 2023, Kunaszyk again became an afterthought with Anthony Walker, Jeremiah Owusu-Koramaoh, Jacob Phillips, and Sione Takitaki all returning. But even with their corps back to full health, the veteran is making sure to stay on the radar.
Kunaszyk continues to play like his hair's on fire and has even earned the praise of defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz, who was seen wearing a No. 51 jersey to give props to the young linebacker for his efforts in OTAs.
While the Browns do have several of their players back, the field is level right now. Outside of JOK, none of the Cleveland linebackers were taken very early in the draft and a couple of them are on one-year deals.
Not only does this mean there are no strong commitments but they're also all learning a new defense under Schwartz. Should Kunaszyk keep playing at a high level, this could be another great year for him.