On paper the Browns are the best team in the AFC North. That conversation starts with Baker Mayfield, the 2018 first-overall pick, and right behind him is Odell Beckham Jr., the former Giants first-rounder who was acquired via trade in March.

It should come as no surprise that Beckham has been very vocal about his intention to make the Browns relevant again. This is an outfit that hasn't had a winning season since 2007, hasn't been to the playoffs since 2002 and hasn't won a playoff game since January 1994 -- which was before the team relocated to Baltimore and was still coached by some guy named Bill Belichick. This brings us to Beckham's remarks from earlier in the week.

"I plan on being there for the next five years and trying to bring as many championships there as possible," Beckham told GQ from the Met Gala on Monday, "turning [the Browns] into the new Patriots."

As you might imagine, this didn't go over well with some folks because, well, some folks will take issue with anything. Either way, Beckham explained himself on Thursday.

"Just to clarify, I will always aspire to be great,'' he wrote in an Instagram story, via Cleveland.com's Mary Kay Cabot. "I haven't reached that point in the NFL but that's what we all chase and I'm going to continue to work to help the Browns become great. [I] never meant the Browns are the new Patriots or going to be the new Patriots. I just have great respect for what they've done but definitely recognize the work that has to be done to get there."

He continued: "There's nothing wrong with having aspirations, and who wouldn't aspire to be part of an organization that is 12-4, 11-5 and in the playoffs and playing for Super Bowls on the regular?"

Fair question. And again, the Browns' roster is stacked. To the point that their biggest issue won't be on-field talent but whether first-year coach Freddie Kitchens can get the best out of a group that has been really bad for a really long time.

"...[I]t's really stating the obvious when you say you want your organization to be successful like the Patriots. I know my teammates want to be a part of building something like that ...," Beckham wrote.

"Freddie Kitchens and [general manager] John Dorsey are doing everything they can to get us there. Understand it doesn't happen without work and we're all committed to that. Our work will determine what the Browns become. I'm content with that because I know we control the amount of work we put in. I will keep working, working towards building something great!"

If you're not keen on all of Beckham's optimism, Kitchens is here for you.

"We were 7-8-1,'' he said from rookie minicamp last week, via Cabot. "We didn't do [anything] last year. We didn't win anything. We were third in the division. I don't know where all of this is coming from. Just because the Super Bowl is our goal doesn't mean that's where we're at right now. We're a team just like the other 31 teams, and we are focused on training camp, OTAs, minicamp and getting better when those guys are back in the building."