John Kuntz, cleveland.com

No Passing Fancy

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The Browns tied for second-fewest touchdown catches in the NFL with 15 in 2016, and did little to upgrade the position since last December. They essentially swapped out Terrelle Pryor for Kenny Britt, replacing one 1,000-yard receiver for another. They are banking on 2016 first-rounder Corey Coleman staying healthy and other second-year wideouts such as Ricardo Louis stepping up.

They passed on opportunities to add other veteran receivers such as former first-rounder Jeremy Maclin, who signed with the Ravens, but would’ve been open to a visit to Cleveland.

The Browns might have to keep their eyes open for other quality veterans to shake loose, and they could have a decision to make on former Pro Bowler Josh Gordon in September. In the meantime, the Browns will have to think globally about their “pass-catchers."

Hue Jackson will have to plan his passing attack around his wideouts, his top two tight ends in Seth DeValve and David Njoku, and his all-purpose back in Duke Johnson, who has been lining up as a slot receiver.

Here’s a look at the position with some of the largest question marks heading into camp.

By Mary Kay Cabot, cleveland.com

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John Kuntz, cleveland.com

Corey Coleman

Coleman missed six games in 2016 after breaking his hand in practice before Week 3 and never really caught up. In 10 starts, he caught 33 passes for 413 yards and 3 TDs. Coleman never had more than five receptions in a game. Late in the season, he lamented the quality of his targets.

The marquee “X’’ receiver, Coleman worked hard in the off-season to learn to use the whole field and exploit the route tree. But he went down midway through organized team activities with a pulled hamstring and tweaked shoulder, and sat out the rest of spring practices and the mandatory minicamp in June. Now, the Browns will have to be careful with Coleman in camp — and likely beyond — to keep him healthy.

Coleman’s blazing speed is his calling card, especially at his size (5-11, 185). Jackson has called for Coleman to make a big jump, and expects him to approach Pro Bowl status by year two.

“The way he understands the offense now is so much better than he did last year when he first came in and we all know that Corey had a long way to go,’’ said receivers coach Al Saunders. “He had a long way to go based on the college offense that he ran and the limited exposure he had to route adjustments and the different route trees, but he's come a long way and he's just got to be able to stay healthy and be available."

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Kenny Britt

Britt, the first-round pick of the Titans in 2009, replaces Pryor, who had 1,000 yards in his first season as a wide receiver. Britt had his first 1,000-yard season too, as one of the lone bright spots on a horrible Rams offense in 2016. He caught five of their league-low 14 passing TDs.

But according to Next Gen Stats, Britt ranked eighth in the NFL in making contested catches against tight coverage. All told, his stats were very similar to Pryor's: 68 catches for 1,002 yards and 5 TDs compared to 77/1,007/4 for Pryor.

Still, Saunders lamented the loss of Pryor, whom he converted into a wideout and made into a 1,000-yard receiver in his first year — despite four quarterbacks taking snaps.

“Kenny brings the size,’’ said Saunders at minicamp. “He's probably a little more physical than Terrelle is and Terrelle was learning how to play the position. Kenny brings an experience level to us that we don't have in that room. They're both great to work with but Kenny's just a different kind of a player and we'll see when we get into uniforms and playing against people how you would compare those two.

"But we're going to miss Terrelle and we're glad to have Kenny here. It would be nice to have both of them.’’

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Ricardo Louis

Louis, the Browns’ 2016 fourth-round pick out of Auburn, barely saw the field as a rookie -- limited to 18 catches for 205 yards. But he has worked to change that, and stood out in spring practices, especially with Coleman down.

“You look at Ricardo now and he's playing with so much more confidence,’’ said Saunders. “He's catching the ball really well, he's running fast and here's a guy, once again, that was a quarterback all the way through high school.

"He goes to college, they make him a wide receiver and he played very minimally at Auburn. I think he only caught 29 balls there in his career, so he's in a tremendous developmental stage. But he’s made great strides, I'm really proud of him."

Louis (6-2, 215) is so confident that he’s not conceding the starting jobs to anyone.

“Definitely I have a chance,’’ he said. “We’re all competing to get on the field and play. Nobody has a legit spot right now. Nobody’s No. 1, nobody’s No. 2. Right now we’re just all competing to see who can do things the best."

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John Kuntz, cleveland.com

Rashard Higgins

Higgins, the 2016 fifth-round pick out of Colorado State, caught only six passes for 77 yards as a rookie after predicting a 7-TD campaign. He also has made strides, but not as many as Louis. If Higgins is to challenge for playing time, he’ll have to show more in camp than he did in the spring.

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John Kuntz, cleveland.com

Duke Johnson

This isn’t a mistake. Johnson belongs in the wide receiver preview, because he’s more of a pass-catcher than a runner.

He is the leading candidate to replace Andrew Hawkins as the No. 1 slot receiver. Johnson has caught passes out of the backfield and while split wide. He’s averaged 57 catches in his first two seasons, and will probably have at least that many this season. The Browns’ third-round pick in 2015, Johnson ran the ball only 73 times last season, down from 104 as a rookie. He averaged 4.9 yards per carry, but it remains to be seen if he’ll get more carries, especially with his anticipated new role.

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Jordan Payton

Payton, a fifth-round pick last year out of UCLA, was mostly inactive and then suspended the final four games for violating the NFL’s policy on performance-enhancing drugs. Payton, who caught only one pass for three yards last season, has a lot to prove this camp.

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Rannell Hall

Like last offseason, Hall stood out in spring practices with some tough catches. Originally signed by the Bucs as an undrafted free agent out of Central Florida in 2015, the Browns plucked him off Tampa’s practice squad in December of that year. Hall (6-0, 200) was a surprise candidate to make the team last season, but broke his fibula in the preseason opener and sat out the year.

“He's come back and you would never know he's had any injury,” Saunders said. “He's better than he was when he got hurt. We're excited about the competition he's providing to all of those guys.”

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John Kuntz, cleveland.com

Josh Gordon

Gordon can apply again for reinstatement to the NFL in September, and if Roger Goodell lets him back in the league, the Browns have a decision. Do they welcome him back? Try to trade him? It will likely depend on Jackson after they meet. The Pro Bowler has some allies in the building, including consultant Jim Brown. If he’s truly adhered to his program for a year since going to rehab, it’s worth a shot.

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Josh Boyce, James Wright and other contenders

The Browns have a group of hopefuls that include Mario Alford, Josh Boyce, Jordan Leslie, Richard Mullaney and James Wright.

Wright, a seventh-round pick of the Bengals in 2014, tore a knee ligament in 2014 and missed the rest of that year and all of the next. Last season, he caught 13 passes for 106 yards. Boyce, originally a fourth round pick of the Patriots in 2014, was signed to the practice squad in September and then re-signed in January.

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Projected starters

Coleman and Britt (who signed a four-year free agent deal worth $32.5 million) are slated to start, with Coleman at the X, or split end, and Britt at the Z outside the tight end. Johnson is a top contender to replace Andrew Hawkins in the slot. Ricardo Louis will also get playing time if he continues to perform as he did in spring practices.