Cleveland Browns' Week 7 Stock Report

The Cleveland Browns very nearly took down the undefeated Denver Broncos in Week 6, but it did not come to pass. Thanks to a handful of late-game mistakes, the Browns fell, 26-23, in overtime.

It wasn't all bad, of course—some Browns players stepped up, though others certainly had their struggles.

Here are the Browns whose stocks are rising and falling heading into the team's Week 7 meeting with the St. Louis Rams.

Stock Up: WR Travis Benjamin

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While tight end Gary Barnidge was the one to score two touchdowns in Week 6, keeping the Browns in their game against the Broncos, it cannot be denied that receiver Travis Benjamin's was the team's biggest chains-mover.

Benjamin didn't score a touchdown, but he did pull down nine passes on 13 targets, for 163 yards, including a long catch-and-run of 47 yards. It's the second time this season that Benjamin has eclipsed 100 yards, bringing his yardage total on the year to 528, a career-best.

The 25-year-old is also proving to be far more reliable than a year ago, when he caught only 18 passes on 46 targets, for a catch percentage of 39.1. Now, he's caught 59.6 percent of the passes thrown to him, and he's making defenders take notice. 

According to Pro Football Focus, six different Broncos defenders shadowed Benjamin on Sunday, all of whom allowed at least one reception to the speedy "Rabbit."

Even when Benjamin is not scoring touchdowns, he's making life so much easier for the Cleveland offense. No team has found the proper matchup to quiet him yet.

Stock Down: RB Isaiah Crowell

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It was obvious when the Browns drafted running back Duke Johnson this year that fellow back, Isaiah Crowell, could be negatively impacted by the move. Things looked up for Crowell, though, when the Browns traded fellow back Terrance West to the Tennessee Titans just before the regular season began.

But now, Robert Turbin is healthy and on the active roster after starting the year sidelined with an ankle sprain. And another back, Glenn Winston, came off of the physically-unable-to-perform list this week, giving the Browns yet another player who can steal carries away from Crowell.

We saw it in Week 6. Johnson was the team's leading rusher in the game, with nine carries for 38 yards. Crowell, meanwhile, had 11 carries for 32 yards, while Turbin had 10 rushes for 27 yards. It wasn't a strong performance by any back, but given how strong Denver's defensive front can be, 30 total Browns rushes is a sign that the team wants to move the ball on the ground more often.

But with Turbin and now Winston back in the fold, Crowell looks like the one who could see his carries decrease.

That's not to say he won't have a role—the 22-year-old Crowell has been more involved in the passing game this year and had two catches for nine yards against Denver—but it appears to be shrinking somewhat as the running backs corps becomes more crowded.

Stock Up: LB Karlos Dansby

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There may have been no better Cleveland defensive player on Sunday than inside linebacker Karlos Dansby.

The 33-year-old totaled seven combined tackles (five solo) and two passes defensed. But, more importantly, he picked off Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning twice, including one returned for a touchdown.

On the year, Dansby is the Browns' tackling leader, with 47 combined and 25 solo. He has two tackles for a loss, four passes defensed and those aforementioned two interceptions. The first pick stalled a promising Broncos opening drive, while the second gave the Browns a four-point lead in the fourth quarter.

Dansby not only provides leadership in the Browns' locker room, but he also backs it up on the field. Sunday's game would not have been so close if Dansby hadn't made key plays to keep the Browns in the game.

Stock Down: WR Dwayne Bowe

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Another week, another healthy scratch for Browns receiver Dwayne Bowe. For the second week in a row, a 100 percent healthy Bowe has been sitting on the sidelines, inactive. As of now, he's appeared in only two games and has zero catches on two receptions.

Head coach Mike Pettine explained his rationale on Wednesday, saying, "[...] the top four guys are entrenched. [receiver] Marlon [Moore] is doing an outstanding job on [special] teams when he's available."

The "top four" Pettine is referring to are receivers Andrew Hawkins, Taylor Gabriel, Travis Benjamin and Brian Hartline, who join tight end Gary Barnidge and running backs Duke Johnson and, to a lesser extent, Isaiah Crowell, as the team's top receiving targets.

While Pettine can say that Moore's special-teams status is partly to blame for Bowe's inactive streak, that's not entirely the case. Pro Football Focus has Moore involved in Cleveland's special teams in just Weeks 1, 2, 3 and 5. Neither were active in Week 6.

It's redundant to keep putting Bowe on the stock-down list every week. But every week the 31-year-old is a healthy scratch, the more conspicuous the Browns' signing him—to the tune of $12.5 million—looks.

At some point, there will have to be a better explanation for Bowe's absence beyond Moore's value on special teams.

Stock Up: LB Barkevious Mingo

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Browns outside linebacker Barkevious Mingo didn't exactly light the world on fire in Week 6, but he did make his presence felt, which is exactly what he needed a week after playing a mere three snaps against the Baltimore Ravens.

Mingo totaled one tackle in the game and was not targeted, directly, once. But he did notch an interception of Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning in overtime. Had Browns quarterback Josh McCown not taken two back-to-back sacks in the ensuing Browns possession, it would have led to a game-winning field goal.

Plays like that prove that Mingo isn't a complete bust. While the 25-year-old is yet to live up to his draft billing, there's also the matter of Cleveland's linebacking rotation to contend with and the fact that coverage may be Mingo's best bet to contribute. 

At the very least, Mingo has proven that he deserves more than a handful of defensive snaps going forward. He just needs the chance to make an impact and, eventually (as we saw in Week 6), he will.