Deshaun Watson's connection with Elijah Moore shines in Browns offseason workouts

CLEVELAND — The Browns wrapped up their mandatory minicamp Thursday, prefaced by the work put in during voluntary OTAs and off-campus work from the offense during quarterback Deshaun Watson's group trip to Puerto Rico. Throughout the early offseason work, there's been one connection in particular that has stood out—that between Watson and new wide receiver Elijah Moore.

Moore was acquired by the Browns at the end of March in a trade with the New York Jets. The Browns sent their 2023 second-round pick—pick No. 42—to the Jets in exchange for Moore and third-round pick No. 74, which they used to select wide receiver Cedric Tillman.

It was clear before he even arrived in Cleveland how Moore might benefit the Browns' offense. The 22-year-old has been in the league for two seasons, still on his rookie deal, and seemed to be the Browns' approach to adding speed to the receiver corps. Moore notched an impressive 4.32-second 40-yard dash, a 4.00-second short shuttle and a 6.65-second three-cone drill at his pro day.

But after seeing Moore in action during the early offseason workouts, the benefit he could provide the offense once the season approaches is undeniable.

All throughout the practice sessions, Moore and Watson have drawn eyes to their connection. Deep passes to Moore have created some fun highlights for the reel. Moore's knack for pass-catching and sure hands has only been made more evident. A one-handed snag in the end zone during drills Thursday made that particularly clear.

Browns wide receivers coach Chad O'Shea sees how that connection has shined in camp and attributes it to the skill set Moore has and how that skill set meshes with Watson's.

"He has exceptional ball skills and very strong hands, so as well as Deshaun throws the ball and as well as Deshaunn throws the ball down the field, Elijah's able to track the ball at all levels of the offense. He can track the ball in that short area and take a ball and catch and run. He can get behind the defense and track the deep ball very well and especially at his size, being a smaller receiver, he really plays big in my opinion and he's got exceptional ball skills. So it fits really well with our quarterback," O'Shea said.

With Watson able to connect with a receiver as speedy and versatile as Moore, it has the potential to open up the offense and diversify the connections between other weapons like Amari Cooper, Donovan Peoples-Jones and David Njoku.

Cooper's route-running ability paired with Peoples-Jones' knack for the sideline catches, mixed in with the 50/50 contested catch ability of Njoku and topped off with the speed and sureness of Moore (not to mention the speed of Marquise Goodwin and the size of rookie Tillman) creates a range of passing threats for the Watson-led offense.

That versatility is something appreciated by the players on the field, like Njoku, who has been here for seasons that didn't always have this kind of approach to adding talent in needed areas.

“Really excites me. It truly does. Having all the right pieces, putting it all together, it's very exciting. It's the best way to put it—excitement," Njoku said. "I'm going on year seven. I still feel like I'm 21, honestly. But yeah, just seeing everything come together, seeing how things was in the past and seeing how they're progressing now, it's night and day. So, we're very excited.”

For Watson, the addition of players like Moore feels like the chance for the Browns to make it difficult for opposing defenses to prepare for their offensive attack this season.

"AVP and Kevin [Stefanski], those guys have done a great job of getting all of the guys that's in the receiver room and they’re being able to do everything, playing different positions, playing outside, inside. Everyone can do everything. So you never know going into a game plan or a situation what personnel we have in and what we can do out that personnel grouping," Watson said.

The early success and connection between Watson and Moore could mean the Browns got things right this offseason. It will have to be proven on the field this fall, but for now, it's good news for the team looking to make a splash this year.

Moore's addition to the roster, and the move expanding the versatility within the receiver corps, is generating excitement among the team as the work this offseason continues and the chemistry develops.

"It's been great to add the pieces that we have at receiver. I mean, they have been so impressive this spring and their ability to work with each other has been great, so they're really coming in as accomplished players," O'Shea said. "It's been a lot of fun to see them kind of integrate with our other players and see them just kind of fit right in."

Watch live and local news any time:

Download the News 5 Cleveland app now for more stories from us, plus alerts on major news, the latest weather forecast, traffic information and much more. Download now on your Apple device here, and your Android device here.

You can also catch News 5 Cleveland on Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, YouTube TV, DIRECTV NOW, Hulu Live and more. We're also on Amazon Alexa devices. Learn more about our streaming options here.