Over the first full weekend of NFL preseason action a main focus was upon rookie quarterbacks. Players like [autotag]Trey Lance[/autotag], Justin Fields, Mac Jones, Trevor Lawrence and Zach Wilson all saw their first live action, giving fans of those franchises hope for the future…or even the present.
But there were more rookies in action this weekend, some of whom might also provide fans of those franchises reason to believe. One is Cleveland Browns rookie defender Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah. The Notre Dame product was part of a defensive haul the Browns assembled this off-season, starting in free agency and lingering into the draft.
Selected in the second round, Owusu-Koramoah looks the part of the modern hybrid defender: A player who can thrive in multiple roles. You might see him as a stack linebacker helping against the run on first down, covering a receiver in the slot on second, and then rushing the passer on third.
Given that, let us highlight three such moments from his debut against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
A snap that is getting a lot of attention is this sack of Jacksonville quarterback Gardner Minshew:
For this 3rd-and-6 play the Browns show pressure, putting six in the box over the interior linemen, and Owusu-Koramoah engages in his own pressure game of showing an interior blitz and then backing off the line. But he eventually brings the interior pressure, and after Minshew tries to climb the pocket due to edge pressure, the rookie is able to get home for the sack.
Looking at this play from the end zone angle, you can see the athleticism from Owusu-Koramoah as he dips around the running back, and then quickly changes direction to mirror Minshew and bring him down to force a punt:
One of the questions about Owusu-Koramoah’s adjustment to the NFL focused upon how well he could handle life as a stack linebacker tasked with stopping the run. This play from the second half is a good example of his instincts and execution with respect to the run game:
The Jaguars shift the tight end from the left side of the offense to the right, changing the run strength of the formation. As you can see the defense responds, flipping the linebackers and strong safety Jovante Moffatt. Then the offense runs a zone design, inserting the tight end into the A-gap between the center and the right guard. That act allows the offense to create — or steal depending on your point of view — an additional gap for the defense to account for. Given the defensive front and alignment, Owusu-Koramoah has to get himself to the left side of the inserting tight end, allowing Moffatt to then fit into the created gap and stop the run.
Owusu-Koramoah does just that, and the safety chops down the ball-carrier for no gain.
Finally, let’s talk for a second about Owusu-Koramoah as a slot defender. There were a few examples of him handling this responsibility, but I would like to focus on this play:
This is another third-down situation, and the rookie finds himself in the slot covering the slot receiver in man coverage. Jacksonville runs a slant-flat combination to the left, and while Owusu-Koramoah misses his initial jam, you can see the route recognition and his athleticism/recovery skills. The ball comes out late and is slightly off-target, which helps, but the rookie recognizes the route combination, flattens his path in response and makes a sure tackle in open space, forcing the Jaguars to bring on the punt team once more.
Cleveland head coach Kevin Stefanski had some praise for his rookie defender after the game. “That’s what he’s done in practice,” Stefanski said. “He plays at a very high speed. He’s twitchy and he defeats blocks.” For his part Owusu-Koramoah seemed confident in what he was able to put on film, particularly after some time off. “I said this week that I was going to play a lot, and that’s very much what I did. I’m glad that I got that experience,’’ Owusu-Koramoah said in his postgame press conference. “I’m glad that I got those reps to be able to catch up some of what I lost in those 10 days.’’
He also showed some ability to deflect praise to his teammates. “It was a pretty good play,’’ Owusu-Koramoah said. “The coaches drew it up. I give the praises to the d-linemen, I give the praises to the coaches for calling the play. It’s a play that I executed on and it went well.’’
Part of Owusu-Koramoah’s appeal pre-draft — and the reason I was high on him coming out of Notre Dame — was his versatility. During his first NFL action, he was able to back up that assessment with his play on the field.
The beauty of the NFL off-season is that teams have to make decisions that illustrate how they feel about their roster. Given all the additions on defense, including their new hybrid defender, the Browns clearly want to stop some of the NFL’s best defenses. Owusu-Koramoah showed on this night that he could be a big part of that plan.