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:
Kyle Shanahan says the 49ers didn’t just cancel yesterday’s OTA session, the rest of the spring season — including next week’s veteran minicamp — has been cancelled, too. That means the next time the team assembles it will be training camp.
— Matt Barrows (@mattbarrows) June 9, 2021
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:
NFLPA chief DeMaurice Smith says the union is investigating a number of teams now for violating the offseason rules. Adds that one team has already been punished.
— Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) June 10, 2021
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.