CLEVELAND, Ohio — The Browns aren’t typically a team that has a lot of exciting battles in training camp. Their top players are in good shape and the top positions are mostly taken. You could make a reasonable guess tonight about their Week 1 starting lineup and chances are you’d be right, except for a few spots here and there where they’re dealing with injuries, like at left tackle.
It’s also worth noting that GM Andrew Berry and head coach Kevin Stefanski don’t often overreact to performance in preseason games. Players can certainly play their way onto the roster, as safety Ronnie Hickman and linebacker Mohamoud Diabate did last year, but they rarely overreact when players have big preseason appearances, especially in a game like Saturday afternoon’s when those performances come against backups and inferior players.
All of this means that the Browns’ decision regarding the defensive tackle will arguably be the most exciting and surprising with just over a week left until cut-down day.
As it stands, the Browns have three sure-fire players: Dalvin Tomlinson, Quinton Jefferson and Mike Hall Jr. Mo Hurst II and Shelby Harris are close, but it’s worth noting that Harris was in uniform and started Saturday on a day when most of the regulars and players who don’t have much to prove sat. (Hurst didn’t play, but he also left Thursday’s joint practice due to injury.)
Add those two in, and that’s five players in a position group where it’s difficult to figure out how to keep five players – and there are at least three more players fighting for a spot, including a surprise player with a real chance to make it.
Let’s first look at the defensive end position, though, because that’s also part of the decision-making process. Myles Garrett, Za’Darius Smith, Ogbo Okoronkwo and Alex Wright are all in the mix, as are former draft picks Isaiah McGuire and Isaiah Thomas. (The Browns released Thomas last year and kept him on the practice squad, so it wouldn’t be unusual if they did that with him or McGuire.)
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The Browns will use special pass rush packages to move all of these ends inside on pass attempts, placing more emphasis on the edge rushers.
So we go back to the defensive tackle room, where Sam Kamara is pushing for more time. He’s listed as an end, but the Browns are letting him play tackle this summer.
“I’ve been telling him all last year that he needs to play inside and he’s finally embraced that and (defensive line coach Jacques Cesaire) has really got him going and he’s doing a phenomenal job for us and being very productive,” Hurst said earlier this week. “He’s extremely strong and powerful and moves really well for a guy that’s over 300 pounds and can still play end. He has skills that not a lot of guys have.”
He also received praise for his work on special teams, including the new kickoff rule in which the Browns send their big players onto the field to help with the return play.
We also didn’t mention Siaki Ika, a third-round pick last year, or Jowon Briggs, a seventh-round pick this year.
Ika and Briggs could potentially make the practice squad and make room for someone else. Ika’s status seems particularly precarious.
They could keep five or six defensive tackles, but those extra players will have to come from somewhere else — either from the edge rush group or from another position. That would make it harder to keep five safeties, for example, like they did last year.
There’s still time until decision day, which means things can happen that make the decisions for them. An injury could happen. Tomlinson hasn’t returned to practice yet and we don’t have an update on his status in Week 1. The Browns could look at how to get creative there.
Hall’s situation also ties into this decision. He was arrested on Tuesday and charged with domestic violence, and the NFL could decide to intervene at any time. While it seems more likely that they’ll let the legal process play out to some extent first, it’s still worth considering.
If you’re looking for tackles with just a few practices and one preseason game left, the defensive tackle room has emerged as one of the key positions to keep an eye on.
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