Tag: Jowon Briggs

Browns Podcast: Can Jowon Briggs make the 53-man roster in 2024?

It will be an uphill battle for Briggs to make the active roster

Despite a room stacked with contributors and talent, the Browns drafted two more defensive tackles in April. While Michael Hall Jr. has a roster spot locked up, the team’s final draft pick, Jowon Briggs, will have a harder time securing his place on the 53-man roster.

In Briggs’s final season at Cincinnati, he was used in a way that didn’t make sense for his skillset, which hurt his draft stock. UC lined him up over the tackle and not inside, and for a player of his size, it just wasn’t a good idea.

Briggs has impressive short-area explosiveness off the line of scrimmage and has tremendous upper-body strength. He struggles to play with good leverage constantly to utilize his power, and his hand placement needs some work. But if he can work on the technical side of the game on the practice squad this year, he could be a solid contributor going forward.

You can hear more about the Browns final pick this year on our latest episode by clicking here.

Poll: How do you grade the Browns’ pick of Jowon Briggs?

Do you agree with this pick?

The 2024 NFL draft wrapped up for the Cleveland Browns with their second selection of the seventh round, Jowon Briggs from Cincinnati. It was the second time Cleveland drafted a defensive tackle in this class after taking Ohio State’s Michael Hall Jr. in the second round.

But Briggs is a different type of defensive tackle as a bigger-bodied player known for shutting down the middle in the running game. Briggs does a great job absorbing blocking and churning the line, but his impact as a pass rusher is minimal.

For his size, Briggs has good lateral quickness and can chase down ball carriers. He does many of the same things Siaki Ika does, so I’m not entirely sure why he was picked unless Ika is on his way out. Either way, this is added competition to one of the deepest parts of this roster. 

How do you grade the selection of Jowon Briggs from Cincinnati?

Here’s what UC coach Scott Satterfield has to say about new Browns DT Jowon Briggs

Briggs gets high praise heaped on him by his former head coach

Selecting him with the 243rd pick in the 2024 NFL draft, the Cleveland Browns reached their hand just south of Cleveland to select Cincinnati defensive tackle Jowon Briggs. And after the Browns drafted him, Cincinnati head coach Scott Satterfield had some high praise for the defensive tackle:

“I’m excited for Jowon and his family to realize his dream of playing in the NFL. I fully expect him to make an impact with the Cleveland Browns because he has already carried himself like a pro for years. He has an outstanding work ethic and was a great leader for us. He’s also one of the strongest players I’ve ever been around. I look forward to watching him play on Sundays.”

The attitude and leadership of Briggs has already been singled out by Browns’ brass as well, as Briggs wrote the organization a text of gratitude after he visited Cleveland during the predraft circuit. That has now been resounded from Satterfield as well.

Off the field, the Browns got a good one. Briggs is going to work hard to make sure they get a good one on the field as well.

Browns highlight the gratitude of new DT Jowon Briggs in his draft day call

The Browns got a good one in Jowon Briggs.

Taking their second defensive tackle of the weekend in the 2024 NFL draft, the Cleveland Browns are bringing the Cincinnati product Jowon Briggs up I-71 North, selecting him with pick No. 243.

Known as a high-character player, the Browns went out of their way on the call to Briggs to let him know they were taking him off the board to highlight and act of gratitude that stood out to them.

General manager had this to say to Briggs as he broke the news that he had become the newest member of the Cleveland Browns:

“In my NFL career, I have never had a prospect send such a kind and thoughtful text after his 30 visit like you did after you can and visited us.”

Briggs went on to respond:

“I just wanted to let you know that I appreciate the time.”

Known as a stout run defender, Briggs will come in and compete for a roster spot as a player that can help the Browns out on early downs.

Watch the video of Briggs getting the call from the Browns here.

Browns select Cincinnati DT Jowon Briggs with 243rd pick in 2024 NFL Draft

The Browns end their 2024 NFL draft with another defensive tackle!

With the 243rd pick in the 2024 NFL draft, the Cleveland Browns selected Cincinnati defensive tackle Jowon Briggs

The Browns had Briggs in for a top-30 visit this offseason. Briggs is from Ohio, he grew up in Cincinnati and attended Walnut Hills High School.

Briggs was voted as a team captain last season. His presence was felt on and off the field. He is a strong player at the point of attack. He held up the interior of the Bearcats defense.

Briggs is a stout run defender who has natural leverage against offensive linemen. Briggs is 6-foot-1, 313 pounds, with 32.25-inch arms. He made waves at his pro day when he benched 225 pounds 42 times. That would’ve been the most at the NFL Combine.

Briggs is best when he’s told to penetrate a gap and create havoc for the offensive line. His quick first step and the power of his punch make for a deadly combination when fighting for position. Unfortunately, his strength doesn’t last for long and he will get washed out of plays by blockers. He can be quick to give ground against double teams.

Briggs is the last pick for the Browns in the 2024 NFL draft. He will enter the NFL fighting for a roster spot in a crowded room. Briggs will not have to wait long to impress the coaches. The rookie minicamp will start in May.

Jets trade up for Rome Odunze in 7-round mock from The Athletic

Jets trade up for Rome Odunze in 7-round mock from The Athletic

The Jets would love to come away with a Round 1 pass-catcher Thursday night and they may very well move up the board to get it.

That’s the scenario that plays out in the final seven-round mock for the Jets by Zack Rosenblatt of The Athletic. He has the Jets moving up three spots in a trade with the Tennessee Titans to land Washington wide receiver Rome Odunze and instantly make the Jets’ offense much more dynamic.

The Jets may very well get aggressive in getting one of the top pass-catchers in this draft, particularly Odunze, who would immediately form one of the best young wide-receiver duos with Garrett Wilson. In this scenario, the Jets trade pick No. 134 this year and a fourth-round pick next year to make the move and jump ahead of the Falcons and Bears to land the Washington stud.

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The Titans or Falcons feel like the teams to watch if the Jets are going to trade up to get one of the trio of stud wide receivers (Odunze, Marvin Harrison, Malik Nabers). I went with the Titans because I don’t think it can be ruled out that Atlanta might want to take a wide receiver after investing in Kirk Cousins. The Titans already have DeAndre Hopkins and Calvin Ridley and should still be able to get a top offensive tackle at No. 10.

As for the Jets: GM Joe Douglas has made it clear with all of his moves this offseason — and the structures of the contracts he has given out — that they are all-in on winning in 2024. So if the opportunity presents itself to go and get a wide receiver of this caliber (whether it’s Odunze, Nabers or Harrison), I don’t see why he wouldn’t pursue it. It shouldn’t take too much to move up a couple spots in the order and wide receiver is still a need, even after signing Mike Williams.

It would be interesting to know whether Notre Dame offensive tackle Joe Alt was still on the board when this deal was made, but regardless, coming away with Odunze would be a home run on Day 1 of the draft for the Jets and all for the low price of two Day 3 picks.

The remaining picks for the Jets in this mock are as follows:

72. Brandon Coleman, OT, TCU
111. Michael Pratt, QB, Tulane
185. Dominique Hampton, S, Washington
256. Jowon Briggs, DL, Cincinnati
257. frank Gore Jr., RB, Southern Mississippi

Cincinnati Bearcats DT Jowon Briggs visits Browns on 2024 NFL draft top-30 visit

Another defensive lineman visits Cleveland

Cincinnati Bearcats defensive lineman Jowon Briggs was in Berea last week as one of the Cleveland Browns’ top-30 visits for the upcoming 2024 NFL draft. Briggs is likely a late-round pick or potentially an undrafted free agent that you take a chance on during training camp.

Briggs brings versatility to the defensive line with experience playing all along the line, both inside and outside. A much better run defender than a pass rusher, Briggs does a good job getting off the line of scrimmage quickly after the snap. He tested relatively well, showing that he is a good athlete for the position with nice physical traits.

Briggs has good upper body strength at the point of attack, and if he can improve his hand usage, it could go a long way in anchoring the middle of the line against the run. The defensive line room is instead packed full in Cleveland, but if they have questions and concerns about someone like Siaki Ika, they could pull the trigger on someone in the draft.

Cincinnati Bearcats Color Analyst Jim Kelly breaks down the Week 4 matchup

The Sooners take on the Cincinnati Bearcats and Color Analyst Jim Kelly lets us know what to expect.

The Oklahoma Sooners open [autotag]Big 12[/autotag] play against the [autotag]Cincinnati Bearcats[/autotag] in their first true road game of the season. The Bearcats come in with one of the best defensive lines in all of college football.

They also come in with the No. 8 rushing attack and the No. 12 overall offense. Many people will look at last week’s loss to the Miami (OH) Redhawks, but in that game, Cincinnati beat themselves. In the Bearcats seven trips to the red zone, they only scored two touchdowns and a pair of field goals.

Color Analyst for the Bearcats, [autotag]Jim Kelly[/autotag], talked with me on my podcast, Eat. Sleep. Bedlam. He said the offense was the unit hurt the most when former Head Coach Luke Fickell left.

“Most of that affected the offense,” Kelly said. “That’s the side of the ball that we thought, we don’t really know what to expect. The defensive side, a lot of folks stayed.”

Two of the guys Sooner fans better get to know are [autotag]Dontay Corleone[/autotag] and [autotag]Jowon Briggs[/autotag]. Those two both play along the defensive line and most likely will be playing on Sundays in the future.

New Head Coach [autotag]Scott Satterfield[/autotag], who was the head coach for the Louisville Cardinals a year ago, brings over an entirely new scheme. Kelly said they are a staff that usually likes to bring pressure.

“They like to blitz a lot, although they’ve played it more straight this year,” Kelly said. “Brian Brown is the defensive coordinator. He came from Louisville with coach Satterfield. They led the nation last year in sacks. So he plays a really aggressive style. However, I don’t think he feels like he has the corners, particularly against a team like Oklahoma and what [autotag]Dillon Gabriel[/autotag] was able to do last week.”

There’s no question the Sooners are going to have to attack this secondary. The running game will probably have to be more outside runs, and offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby may opt for short, quick passes to supplement the running game.

Offensively they have to stop the run. Make [autotag]Emory Jones[/autotag] beat you with his arm. They have three really good running backs to go along with Jones running the ball.

If the Sooners are able to do that, we could be looking at another rout. I don’t expect that. I expect this one to be closer than many people think.

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