Category: offseason activities

Jacoby Brissett wins Browns 3-point contest at Cavs facility

Another bonding experience for the team. See the 3-point contest and Isaac Rochell’s summary video of the day:

Thursday was the final day of OTAs for the Cleveland Browns. While some teams practice, other teams focus on film and still other teams just give their players a day off, the Browns took their players to the Cleveland Cavaliers facilities.

In an earlier OTA, we saw Cleveland players having a knockout basketball competition on the field. We also saw Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah struggle with his basketball skills in a Building the Browns segment.

Now they got a chance to really show what they can do by taking to the Cavs courts. The team has gravitated toward the game of basketball with the new group put together so the trip made a ton of sense.

One of the highlights of their time with Cleveland’s NBA team was a 3-point contest which ended up being won by QB Jacoby Brissett:

Isaac Rochell, who has a huge TikTok following, shared his experience and how much he enjoyed it:

The Browns will move on to mandatory minicamp while continuing to work on bonding and coming together as a team.

Early OTAs give insight into possible starting defense

With week two of OTAs in the books, we have a glimpse of who could start at important positions for the Browns defense:

The Cleveland Browns, like the rest of the NFL, are very early in their offseason programs. With the second week of OTAs ending on Thursday, Cleveland has a lot of unanswered questions.

The big ones have nothing to do with on the field but could impact on the field with the looming discipline for Deshaun Watson and the uncertainty of Baker Mayfield’s future.

On the field, the team is overloaded at running back, has some sorting out to do at wide receiver and the defense has a few question marks.

On the defensive side of the ball, the line’s interior is considered the biggest weakness on the team, while the secondary deployment could be interesting.

This week’s OTAs gave us a look at who could be the starting defenders with new addition Taven Bryan joining third-year man Jordan Elliott on the line. With Troy Hill traded back to Los Angeles, Greg Newsome II seems likely to replace him:

Tommy Togiai, Perrion Winfrey, Sheldon Day and undrafted free agent Glen Logan are also competing for spots on the interior. With Myles Garrett, Jadeveon Clowney, Alex Wright and Isaiah Thomas all capable of moving inside, Cleveland could roll out lineups with three or four defensive ends at times.

Newsome moving inside was predicted when Hill was traded. However, the team has the flexibility with its three safeties and Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah to get creative with their slot coverage.

Rookie M.J. Emerson and A.J. Green will also factor into the cornerback rotation as backups.

Demetric Felton continues to work as a receiver and running back

Felton had more receptions than carries as a rookie, the Browns have more quality RBs than most teams keep and Felton was seen working with the receivers in week two of OTAs. What will his role be?

The Cleveland Browns have an interesting group of running backs going into the 2022 season. Nick Chubb leads the way with Kareem Hunt as his backup despite being a capable and proven starting level running back in the league.

D’Ernest Johnson showed what he could do stepping in for both Chubb and Hunt in 2021. While he hasn’t signed his restricted free agent tender or a long-term contract with the Browns, Johnson cannot negotiate with another team at this point.

Fourth on the depth chart, seemingly, is second-year man Demetric Felton.

As a rookie, Felton played in 16 games with 130 snaps on offense and 201 snaps on special teams. The UCLA product showed flashes in the passing game with 18 receptions for 181 yards and two touchdowns. He also carried the ball seven times for 24 yards and returned 32 punts and nine kicks.

When Cleveland drafted Jerome Ford in the 2022 NFL draft, it called into question what would happen with five quality running backs. While some suggested a trade of Hunt or that the team might lose Johnson, moving Felton to receiver full time made sense as well.

Max Paulus, the college scout sent to talk to the media about the Ford pick, was asked about that possibility. He reiterated what GM Andrew Berry has said that Felton would remain at running back:

If that is true, Johnson signs, no one is traded and everyone stays healthy, the Browns would carry five running backs into the season.

While Berry and Paulus may continue to say Felton will stay in the running back room, in the second week of OTAs, he was not with that group:

In the end, injury, a trade or poor performance could clear space for just four backs but moving Felton, technically or just in use, to receiver would work as well. Given his usage last year, that was his role primarily on top of kick returner.

With Amari Cooper, Donovan-Peoples Jones, Anthony Schwartz, David Bell and Jakeem Grant at receiver, Cleveland has a few veterans and rookies competing to make the roster. It is possible they are also competing with Felton as well.

As Paulus notes, the team values flexibility but it will be interesting if any other running backs are seen working primarily with the receiver group this offseason.

Browns Wednesday OTA highlights: See Watson and the offense thrive

A few highlights for you to enjoy from the first Browns OTA practice open to the media. Some fun throws from Watson on Wednesday:

The Cleveland Browns opened up their OTA practice on Wednesday to members of the media. In our first significant look at Deshaun Watson running the offense, there were a lot of fun highlights.

These types of early practices are set up mostly for the offense to win with no pass rushers or physical play allowed. That said, a lot of tight spirals with an easy, fluid throwing motion from Watson were seen.

Despite not speaking to the media, Watson was the focal point of the day including his time visiting with military personnel and a gift he gave to Anthony Walker, presumably for Walker giving up his jersey number.

Jadeveon Clowney’s return to the field was a fun sight for the team, the players played some basketball and excitement seemed to rule the day.

Here are a few of the highlights from the media presence for today’s session:

Video: Greg Newsome II shows great speed, hands in OTA INT

Video: A quick look, from Building the Browns, at the click and close by Newsome followed by great hands and sideline footwork from OTAs earlier this offseason.

As the Cleveland Browns have Sunday off, the team’s media department released their latest Building the Browns. The episode highlighted a lot of things from the team’s offseason training activities, specifically the mandatory portion.

We saw a lot about linebackers coach Jason Tarver’s energy and focus on details, spent a little time at Jarvis Landry’s softball tournament and got a look at some of the ramp-up work being done during OTAs.

One highlight that stood out involved the Browns top pick from the 2021 NFL draft, Greg Newsome II. The Northwestern cornerback was drafted with the 26th overall pick and is expected to come in and compete for the starting role on the outside. With Denzel Ward locked in at one of the outside roles, Newsome is expected to compete with Greedy Williams for the other to play along with Troy Hill in the slot.

In the play below, Newsome played zone coverage and broke on the ball quickly showing great hands and feet to complete the interception:

 

At the 14 minute mark of the video, we see bad timing between Baker Mayfield and Donovan Peoples-Jones but a great click and close reaction from Newsome. His ability to drive on the ball in his zone responsibilities are exceptional.

Lauded for his sticky defense, ability to play in multiple coverages and this speed, Newsome could be vital as Cleveland tries to keep up with the strong passing attacks in the AFC. Plays like this are a great sign that he will be able to do just that.

Two critical take-a-ways from Browns minicamp

The Cleveland Browns wrapped up minicamp this week and our Brad Ward has two critical take-a-ways from what happened there.

The weather was ideal and attendance perfect for the 2021 Cleveland Browns mandatory minicamp. Free agent Jadeveon Clowney seemed happy with how things were going, exuding an almost jovial attitude when addressing the media. All the Browns players who are reintegrating after season ending injuries appear to be on schedule, if not ahead of their individual recovery timetables.

Head Coach Kevin Stefanski seemed pleased with what they got accomplished during the three days of work. He talked about practicing at the appropriate intensity level for the given situation, “We are trying to be really smart about our pace, particularly when we are in team periods. Going full speed in those periods, it just does not make sense,” Stefanski said.

“There is injury data to back that up, and just thinking about helmets and (shells), the guys are not wearing shoulder pads, so it is hard to protect themselves. We feel like we can go full speed in individual (drills) to work on our technique, and we can go full speed in seven-on-seven and take care of each other and stay away from collisions. When we get to those team drills, we are really putting an emphasis on alignment, assignment and communication, and then we are just going to slow it down post-snap.”

Baker Mayfield, Denzel Ward and Nick Chubb were all asked about contract extensions and all three efficiently disposed of the topic with similar statements about their focus being on the field. Ward and Chubb both did say they would like to remain in Cleveland.

Other than the all-around positive feeling about the team’s progress and togetherness, there were two things that stood out as the top take-a-ways from Browns minicamp.

Greg Newsome’s versatility could alleviate potential depth concern

The first is the versatility that first-round draft pick Greg Newsome III has shown thus far. One of concern was depth at the nickel cornerback position. The fear was that if, for some reason, Troy Hill were forced to miss some time during the season, the Browns would have to turn to someone who should not be on the field. We saw this way too much in 2020 with Tavierre Thomas and MJ Stewart logging way too many snaps as the team’s nickel corner.

When Newsome was drafted, he was profiled as an outside cornerback without much mention of his ability to slide inside and play in the slot. However, the Browns have been playing Newsome inside at the nickel corner position for stretches of practice since OTA’s and it continued with everyone in attendance at minicamp. This is a great sign as it solves a potential depth issue and leaves the Browns with two corners that have the versatility to play either inside or outside in Hill and Newsome.

Donovan People-Jones shows up looking great 

The other note of significance from minicamp is the appearance and performance of second-year wide receiver Donovan Peoples-Jones. Peoples-Jones flashed some real upside as a rookie, and he comes with prototypical NFL wide receiver size and speed. The word around Berea is that he showed up to minicamp having even further transformed his body in the off-season. He already exhibits elite physical traits in a 6-foot-2 frame, so this is outstanding news. Especially, when the quarterback takes notice.

The future of the wide receiver room after 2021 is a question mark. Peoples-Jones turned just 14 receptions into an impressive 304 yards for a gaudy 21.7 yards per reception. He had a 70% catch rate, and quarterback Baker Mayfield had a near-perfect passer rating (145.8) when targeting him, according to rotoballer.com.  If Peoples-Jones could grow into a legitimate number two wide receiver it could help GM Andrew Berry and the Browns front office to answer some critical questions about the future of the wide receiver position beyond 2021.

Browns LB Anthony Walker changes to an unusual jersey number

No, that’s not Phil Dawson playing LB for the Browns…

When watching the Cleveland Browns defense play this year, it will look a little strange to see a player wearing a No. 4 jersey in the middle.

No, it’s not Phil Dawson trying something new. The No. 4 jersey in Cleveland now belongs to linebacker Anthony Walker.

The LB is changing numbers from 54 to 4. While the Browns have not officially updated the roster, Walker donned the new jersey in Thursday’s minicamp session in Berea.

It’s a new look for Walker, who has worn more normal numbers for LBs (50 and 54) during his entire NFL career with the Indianapolis Colts. Walker sported No. 18 in college at Northwestern for two years before switching to No. 1 in his final Wildcats campaign.

The NFL changed the allowable jersey numbers for various positions this offseason. Linebackers are now allowed to wear numbers below 50, among the changes, and Walker is taking advantage of the rule change.

[vertical-gallery id=62101]

J.C. Tretter sees positives for players OTA negotiations

Cleveland Browns center and NFLPA president J.C. Tretter sees it as a positive that players were able to negotiate changes in OTAs.

[mm-video type=playlist id=01eqbw33aqtym0ft0g player_id=none image=https://brownswire.usatoday.com/wp-content/plugins/mm-video/images/playlist-icon.png]

The Cleveland Browns and center J.C. Tretter are in a unique position together. Tretter the player is focused on what is best for the team, working together to beat every other team in the NFL. As the NFL Players’ Association president, Tretter is focused on what is best for all the players in the league.

Those two roles could come into conflict behind the scenes and lead to questioning from the media. Head coach Kevin Stefanski has already taken multiple questions related to Tretter and his roles and now, with mandatory minicamp starting, the player/president himself stepped up to answer questions.

One area that Tretter was asked about was what many deemed as “OTA boycotts” this offseason. “Again, I will say language is important. We never used the word ‘boycott,’” Tretter responded. “That was kind of used by other people. I do not think you can boycott a voluntary program.”

Tretter also noted that he sees it as a positive that the players were able to negotiate with their teams to see changes to offseason training activities that they wanted.

“I think you see that when these teams agreed to walkthroughs only, sandals for walkthroughs, no helmets, no competitive periods, less time on the field, no meetings, less meetings or canceled minicamps, those are all positive things for players,” he said. “I would say that is a win. The fact that over two-thirds of coaches kind of agreed that the normal offseason program was not necessary and they were willing to cancel weeks or change the tempo,” Tretter finished that statement talking about what he believed that meant about what the coaches thought as well.

As the Browns, and the NFL, move forward from OTAs, it will be interesting if Tretter’s two roles come into focus once again. For now, Tretter and the team are moving forward toward their goal of competing for a Super Bowl.

Nick Chubb on a possible contract extension: ‘Cleveland’s where I want to be’

Chubb is entering the final season of his rookie contract

One of the hot offseason topics for the Cleveland Browns is the long-term fate of running back Nick Chubb. The Pro Bowler is entering the final season of his rookie contract and has established himself as one of the top players at his position in the NFL.

That has led to speculation and conversations about a possible contract extension for Chubb. He was asked about any progress on the contractual front in his press conference at the beginning of this week’s mandatory minicamp.

After refuting any notion that a deal must be done before the regular season begins, Chubb did acknowledge, “It would mean a lot to me (to stay in Cleveland).”

“Cleveland’s where I want to be,” Chubb said in his typically direct tone and economic use of words. “I hope everything can work out in that direction.”

Chubb continued,

“I don’t like uncertainty and I know here in Cleveland what I have with players and coaches, the city of Cleveland. I don’t know how it would be anywhere else, so Cleveland is where I want to be and that’s my main focus.”

[lawrence-related id=62137]

NFL Minicamps: Two Teams Cancel, Others Under Investigation

The NFL is rarely ever dull and this offseason is no different: Two minicamps cancelled and multiple, unnamed teams under investigation!

The NFL offseason is never one that is boring. Until recently, the Cleveland Browns had an exciting one with additions to the team via free agency and the NFL draft, as well as players returning from injury.

Outside of the arrest of Callie Brownson, the biggest negative attention for the team has been related to players who did not show up for voluntary offseason team activities including those who joined Baker Mayfield in Austin, Texas.

The thought was that players should take every opportunity to be together as a team and have time with their coaches. That didn’t happen as Mayfield led many of the skill position players through workouts, on-field drills, and even some time on a boat.

The NFLPA had encouraged players to avoid OTAs this season citing beliefs that in-person work was not necessary and that it was safer to not participate. That came under scrutiny as two Denver players were lost for the season working out away from the team facility which isn’t covered in their contract.

Now comes word that two NFL teams, so far, have cancelled their mandatory minicamps. The San Francisco 49ers cut their OTAs short as well as cancelling their minicamp:

 

The Houston Texans also cancelled their minicamp despite having a new head coach and possible turnover at quarterback:

Culley canceled the team’s mandatory minicamp that had been set to start June 15 after he saw sufficient participation from the team and accomplished what he was looking to get done during the voluntary portion of organized team activities.

“We needed to make sure for at least four weeks during the offseason we had as many players here as possible,” Culley said Wednesday. “This being voluntary, to be able to learn our culture, learn our system, new defense, all of the different players we’ve had.”

Add to those two cancellations that DeMaurice Smith, head of the NFLPA, stated today that multiple teams are under investigation for violating offseason rules:

 

It will be interesting how the rest of the league handles the offseason moving forward. The growing disconnect between the NFLPA and the NFL seems to be creating tension but having two teams voluntarily cancel mandatory minicamps can only backup the NFLPA’s case.

The Cleveland Browns plan to compete for an AFC North crown, the AFC Championship, and a Super Bowl appearance this season. We will continue to monitor the happenings around the league that could impact those goals while hoping the Browns drama is kept to a minimum.

The NFL is rarely ever dull and this offseason is no different.