Author: admin

It’s been a busy time in Berea. Let’s start with pre-season game number two on Sunday. First the positives. On offense, RB/WR/KR Demetric Felton is going to be a valuable weapon in this offense. Rookie OT James Hudson played better at right tackle then he did at left tackle. Blake Hance will make the first 53, he played very well as an emergency center. It’s going to be very difficult to sneak RB John Kelly onto the practice squad. FB Johnny Stanton is going to be tight end number four. On defense, DT Jordan Elliot had a very good game, as did LB Elijah Lee. CB A.J. Green, S Javonte Moffatt and S Richard LeCounte, III will make the first 53. DT Malik McDowell is a force. I know he was playing against guys on the Giants who will be selling insurance this time next week, but you have to remember McDowell hasn’t played football in over four years. At one point in the fourth quarter, the Giants were running plays away from were McDowell was lined up on the field. The biggest negative was during the fourth quarter the game turned into a pre-season game. It got a little ugly. Finally, I’m a little worried about the defensive tackle position.

On Monday the Browns made moves to get down to 80 players. They waived CB Robert Jackson, WR Alexander Hollins and OT Alex Taylor with an injury designation. The Browns placed LB Montrel Meander (Achilles), TE Connor Davis (Shoulder) and K Cody Parkey (Quad) on injured reserve. Since then they waived Parkey and signed LB Tegray Scales. Players placed on the IR prior to the final cut have to sit out for the entire year, so it sounds like Parkey thinks he can come back this year. The Browns might try and put Taylor on the practice squad and the release of Jackson is no surprise, the Jags and the Giants exposed him as a liability to the secondary depth. Better talent in front of him.

On Tuesday it was learned DE Takk McKinley is back with the team after being out three weeks with an illness. Head coach Kevin Stefanski told the local media McKinley’s head is in the right place and he’s ready to start practicing again. This is very good news. Now defensive coordinator Joe Woods can implement the defense he wants to implement. This allows DL Jadeveon Clowney to move inside on passing downs and also help slow down the run. McKinley is a very important piece to the Browns 2021 defense.

Next up pre-season game number three on Sunday night August 29 in Atlanta. The big question, will any starters play in the game? Stefanski said he would talk to the players, which means the team leaders. Part of me, a small part, wants to see the starters, but now I’m thinking hell no. Let’s keep players like Mayfield, Chubb, Hunt, OBJ, Landry, Tretter, Bitonio, Wills, Conklin, Teller, Clowney, Garrett, Jackson, Ward, Hill and Johnson III in bubble wrap. Give JOK limited snaps like you did against the Giants and let the young players take the majority of the snaps. Some, like DE Curtis Weaver, DT Marvin Wilson and OT James Hudson need all the snaps they can get. Players I want to see more of are, of course, Felton & McDowell, DE Joe Jackson, DT Jordan Elliot, DT Sheldon Day and WR JoJo Natson.

There are going to be some tough cuts to the roster next week. Remember it’s not the final 53, it’s the first 53. GM Andrew Berry will be busy finalizing the roster after the first cuts. A player like LB Jacob Phillips will make the first 53 and then be placed on IR designated to return, because the Browns feel he can come back from his injury this year. That’s why he hasn’t been placed on IR for his biceps injury. Everyone stay safe, enjoy the game and Go Browns.

I know it’s only the first pre-season game, but last year at this time there were no pre-season games, so lets go. First observation, the Browns number twos are way better than the Jaguar’s number ones. I know that’s not big time analysis, but actually seeing it is shocking. The Browns were business like and prepared the entire game. This team is scary deep. Who impressed me the most? On offense it’s RB/WR/KR Demetric Felton and on defense it’s LB Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah. Other young players who had good moments were WR Davion Davis, DT Tommy Togiai and S Richard LeCounte. Against the Jags, a lot of players had good moments. I don’t think Urban Meyer really knew what he was getting himself into. Another thing I noticed Saturday night, the Browns second team offensive line is better than about ten other teams number one offensive lines. Finally, the Browns quarterback room is well stocked and head coach Kevin Stefanski loves him some fullbacks.

The Browns only committed two penalties Saturday night, which is great. On the bad side there were three injuries, LB Mack Wilson, TE Stephen Carlson and WR Ryan Switzer. Mack should be back in less then a week while Carlson and Switzer were placed on injured reserve to help the Browns go from 90 to 85 for today’s first cut down day. Both are done for the year. The other three players who were released were LB Montrel Meander, OL Cordel Iwuagwu and CB Kiondre Thomas. The next cut down will be an additional five players on Tuesday, August 24.

This week the Browns will scrimmage the New York Football Giants on Thursday and Friday and play them on Sunday at noon(CST). What a nice time to watch an NFL Game, noon on Sunday. I expect the Browns to have their starters participate in the practices and rest them on Sunday. It’s looks like game three will be when the starters play, probably for about a quarter. Finally, keep an eye on the Takk McKinley situation. So far the team expects him to be back and he was having a great camp. But if GM Andrew Berry brings in another defensive end, that might be it for McKinley. Hopefully everything is alright, like I said, when he practiced he showed speed and great hustle. He is defiantly part of the plan this year. Everyone enjoy your week, stay safe and Go Browns.

Yes I know it’s only a pre-season game and in the past I’ve called these games glorified practices, but hey, it’s still a Browns game. Yesterday, head coach Kevin Stefanski said QB Baker Mayfield would not play Saturday night. This seems like a league wide idea, letting your veteran QB rest in the first game. Who else plays Saturday night might be an easy decision because of a rash of minor injuries. Right now because of all the players on stationary bikes, the Browns could play a game and enter a bike race.

So who’s playing Saturday night? Kevin Stefanski just got done talking to the local media and said the majority of the starters will not play. Stefanski said this is an opportunity for the younger players. The whole team will travel to Jacksonville and participate in practices. QB Case Keenum will start and then QB Kyle Lauletta will take over. I bet Keenum only plays a couple of series. The head coach also said he’s looking forward to seeing the second year guys play. Me too, especially LB Jacob Phillips and DT Jordan Elliot. Both kickers Cody Parkey and Chase McLaughlin will alternate. I still think the kicking job is Parky’s to lose. Finally, Stefanski said both CB Greedy Williams And OL Chris Hubbard will play. Both are coming off of injuries from last year.

Who am I looking forward seeing play? CB Greg Newsome, LB Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, RB/WR/KR Demetric Felton, DT Tommy Togiai, DE Curtis Weaver and all the second year players. I also want to see the progression of LB Mack Wilson, he came to camp with a chip on his shoulder and has been tearing it up. I originally thought he might be a cut candidate, however now I’m not so sure. Who are you looking forward to see play?

It’s going to be nice watching the game live Saturday night and not having to wait till mid week early afternoon to watch a replay. Everyone enjoy the practice, I mean game and Go Browns.

Browns training camp started this week and no players where placed on the PUP list and only one was on the Covid-19 list, second round pick Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah. This doesn’t hurt the team, because the Browns don’t have to count on their draft picks to start. It does hurt JOK, missing the start of training camp. The Browns are taking a cautious approach with OL Chris Hubbard, WR Odell Beckham, Jr. and S Grant Delpit which is good. The best news today is fans will be a training camp. Head coach Kevin Stefanski is finally going to get a feeling for what a Browns training camp is all about. I fully expect him to do something special for the fans.

So far I’ve enjoyed all the videos and the player meetings with the local media. From what I’ve heard, all the players are saying the right things and are echoing the attitude of their head coach. “Last year was great, but we’re concentrating on getting better this year.” I Love It. Everyone is on the same page. After two days of training camp the biggest news was new Browns LB Anthony Walker is going to call the defensive plays. It was thought that new safety John Johnson, III would be the play caller based on him calling the plays for the Rams last year. This tells me Walker will be on the field as a three down linebacker. While being a great run stopper and a tackling machine, Walker is not known for his pass coverage skills. This allows DC Joe Woods to use more nickel and dime packages. I wouldn’t be surprised to see the Browns use three safeties in a nickel package.

The other big news came today when GM Andrew Berry announced the Browns are at 90% vaccination rate for players and 100% for the coaching staff. The teams who are serious about winning have to be at these vaccination rates. QB Baker Mayfield is right, it’s a competitive advantage. HC Kevin Stefanski just announced the team will be at full strength today at practice. Let’s Go. Finally don’t forget the latest episode of “Building The Browns” will air Sunday August 1. at 10:30 am on YouTube. Everyone enjoy the twitter videos, the crowd should be loud, stay safe and Go Browns.

The quiet period is finally over and Browns training camp starts next week. Is everyone tired of lists yet? In honor of the season of lists being over, here’s a final list of important dates for the Browns moving forward. Keep this handy for future reference.

Saturday, July 24, 10:00 AM(EST) the announcement of the Browns retro jersey. I’m not a uniform guy, but I’m kind of interested in seeing this.

Saturday, July 24, Browns rookies and quarterbacks report to Berea. Can’t wait for the video’s on twitter.

Tuesday, July 27, Browns veterans report to Berea. Hopefully the Browns will have their first and third round picks signed by this date.

Thursday, July 29, Browns practice starts.

Friday, July 30, Fans can start attending training camp. It’s about damn time. If you’ve never been to a Browns training camp, it’s a must at least once.

Sunday August 1, Orange and Brown scrimmage at First Energy Stadium.

Sunday August 1, new episode of “Building The Browns.” Required viewing to get you fired up for the season.

Friday, August 14, 7:00 PM (EST), NFL Network, first pre-season game vs the Jacksonville Jaguars. Urban Myers and Sunshine’s NFL debut.

Tuesday, August 17, first cutdown day to 85 players.

Sunday, August 22, 1:00 PM(EST), NFL Network, second pre-season game vs. the New York Giants.

Tuesday, August 24, second cutdown day to 80 players.

Sunday, August 29, 8:00PM(EST), NBC, third pre-season game vs. the Atlanta Falcons.

Tuesday, August 31, Final cutdown day to 53 players. This day is going to be an interesting day for the Browns.

Sunday, September 12, 4:35 PM(EST) Game one vs. the Kansas City Chiefs. The Browns will have two weeks to prepare for this game.

This off season is going to be fun to watch if you’re a Browns fan. All three pre-season games will be live on television. Remember when you had to get up at 1:00 AM to watch a replay? Training camp video’s will be highly scrutinized and the Browns will have some tough cutdown decisions on August 30. It will be interesting to see who will makes the practice squad, because last year it was used heavily. I’m glad to be back writing the http://www.dawgpoundsouth.net blog and I’m still writing articles for http://www.CLEsportstalk.com. Watch this space for further reports on the Cleveland Browns. Everyone stay safe and Go Browns.

Mandatory training camp started today in Berea and everyone is all smiles. More on that later. First let’s start with some bad news, but not unexpected. DT Sheldon Richardson made the split from the Browns official and has signed with the Vikings. The Browns kept in touch with Richardson and his agent since he was cut, but with all the defensive line players already signed by the Browns, his return was always doubtful. On to the good news. It sounds like the Browns had full participation at camp today. WR Odell Beckham, DE Takk McKinley and DE Jadeveon Clowney were all on the field. Beckham was not wearing a knee brace, let me repeat that, Beckham was not wearing a knee brace and participating in practice. More good news, CB Greedy Williams and S Grant Delpit were also participating. Did I mention the Browns have full player participation. They may only be in shorts and helmets, but I’m loving the pictures and videos being shown on twitter.

Prior to practice today RB Nick Chubb, CB Denzel Ward and C J.C. Tretter all spoke to the media. The best news to come out of the interviews was the Browns are in contact with both Chubb’s and Ward’s agents about contract extensions and both said they want to stay with the Browns. I have a feeling both will be signed to extensions, probably Chubb first after the Browns extend QB Baker Mayfield. Unfortunately the odd man out might be RG Wyatt Teller. Someone is going to make him the highest paid guard in 2022 and it’s not going to be the Browns. As I write this, Mayfield is throwing passes to OBJ. I did not expect that today. Beckham’s recovery is amazing. Potential come back player of the year. The only players working out on the side were WR Anthony Schwartz, S/LB Tony Fields, OL Chris Hubbard and DL Malik McDowell.

This roster is the most talented Browns roster I’ve ever seen. For once, when cut down day comes, the Browns will have to cut good players. Browns fans used to look forward to cut down day, hoping the Browns would add players to improve the roster. Now the team will have to cut players because the ones they keep are more talented. This seems like a “Twilight Zone” episode. For those to young to know what I’m talking about, google it. Right now as I write this, the Browns are going through a light 11 on 11 drill. I did not expect that today.

So lets review. The Browns have contacted Chubb’s and Ward’s agents about contract extensions, full participation at mini camp, Delpit and Williams are practicing, Clowney and McKinley are practicing and OBJ doesn’t look like he’s missed a beat. Damn. Enjoy the videos on twitter and Go Browns.

After a year of no OTA’s or mini camp, it’s good to see the Browns back on the field in Berea. What’s causing problems with some Browns fans is that not all Browns players are on the field in Berea. And for some strange reason they’re blaming union president J.C. Tretter. Please stop it. First of all OTA’s are voluntary, repeat voluntary. Second, most of the players at voluntary OTA’s are defensive players. Considering there could be as many as nine new starters on defense, this is a good thing. Third, they’re only doing positional drills, i.e., running around in helmets and shorts. This week, QB Baker Mayfield is having his second passing camp with skill players in Texas. He’s already done this in Florida earlier. Hey ESPN, Baker Mayfield is leader just like Tom Brady. Reports are that Jarvis Landry, Odell Beckham and Donovan Peoples-Jones are all in attendance. Great news. It’s also been reported that the starting offensive line has been practicing together for four or five days a week this off-season. Again great news. LT Jedrick Wills is in Berea working on his run blocking. So everyone come back from the ledge.

Last year the Browns won eleven games with no OTA’s, mini camp or pre-season games with a brand new coaching staff. I think they’re going to be okay. The attendance for the zoom meetings have been great and the Browns are very good at zoom meetings. There were a few games last year where the only practices they had were through zoom meetings. Mayfield will not have an incompletion against Kansas City because he wasn’t at OTA’s throwing to WR Anthony Schwartz. If you can prove this to be true, I’ll dedicate a blog and an article to your forecasting genius.

The true test will be when mandatory mini camp starts on June 15. I expect full participation from all players except those who are rehabbing. I’ll wait till next week to get bent out of shape if the attendance is poor. In other news, CB Greedy Williams was on the field last week practicing, which is fantastic news. Safety Grant Delpit put out a video of him doing individual drills in Berea, which is also fantastic news. With John Johnson and Troy Hill showing up this week, the Browns secondary is looking scary. First round draft pick Greg Newsome fired his agent this week, so something is going on with that situation. Hopefully the Browns can get him under contract prior to next week.

Finally the times and dates for pre-season games have been set. After last year without pre-season games and how it effected the way the Browns played the first part of the season, I look forward to watching these games. I never thought I would hear myself say that, but you could really tell how much the special teams play suffered without them. The Browns face Jacksonville and sunshine in their first game Saturday August 17 at 6:00 pm CST, then the Giants for a rare noon CST game on Sunday August 22 against the Giants. The last game will be a prime time NBC game against the Falcons at 7:00 pm CST on August 29. It’s almost time Browns fans. Everyone stay safe, get vaccinated and Go Browns.

Now that tax season is over, my brain is starting to get back to normal. Constantly thinking about the Browns. Just kidding, I think about the Indians and Vanderbilt baseball as well. But since the NFL is a 365 day a year sport, I always have the Browns on my mind. But unfortunately it’s a real quiet time right now. The Browns have signed five of their eight draft picks, OT James Hudson, DT Tommy Togiai, LB Tony Fields, S Richard LeCounte and RB Demetric Felton. Only the top three picks remain unsigned, but that should happen soon. Team OTA’s are kind of going on. Some veterans have shown up as the players union and union president Browns center J.C. Tretter continue to tell players to stay away. The Browns are honoring Tretter’s stance, however when I see the Browns first opponent, the Chiefs, have 81 players show up for their first OTA, it’s time to work out an agreement. It’s going to get interesting when the Mandatory Mini camp starts on June 15.

Because I was bored this week, I decided to open Browns twitter to see what was going on. Big mistake. First time I missed doing tax returns after the deadline. Apparently this week there is no honor among thieves, bathroom selfies while wearing Browns gear should not have a toilet in the background and the new flavor of the week is Atlanta WR Julio Jones. Like I said, I should have never opened Browns twitter. Let’s look at the Julio Jones situation. First of all, the Browns are not trading for Julio Jones. I’m sure the Falcons would like to trade Jones, but it would be for draft picks, not players. Right now their cap situation is a mess. Depending on which cap website you use (Overthecap or Spotrac) Atlanta has $410,351.00 or $1,691,125.00 in cap room. Currently they can’t sign a draft pick. The Falcons could wait till after June 1 and trade Jones while only losing $200,00. Jones’s cap hit of $23,050,000 comes off the books and the dead money would be $23,250,000. The problem is Atlanta is going to want a ton of draft picks for a wide receiver who’s on the wrong side of 30 and been injured the last two years. No thanks.

Finally, a new episode of “Building The Browns” will air Sunday May 23 at 10:30 am CST on the YouTube channel. This show is the perfect fix for Browns fans as we wait till late summer to see real Browns football. Yes I said late summer. After last year, I now have a greater appreciation for pre-season games. What kind of appreciation? I can’t wait to watch one appreciation. I guess the pandemic has changed me. Everyone stay safe and Go Browns.

Let the schedule games begin. Today in every city with an NFL team, sports talk radio will be occupied with guessing the final record of the local team. It’s amazing how every NFL team will have a winning record. I quit playing this game after the 2019 Browns season when they went 6-10. I didn’t do it last year and the Browns went 11-5. You be the judge. Hello my name is Steve and I’m an overly superstitious Browns fan. So if you’re looking for a schedule prediction, you’re looking in the wrong place. What I will do is give a quick analysis of the schedule. So here goes.

The main attention is on the opener vs. the Chiefs in Kansas City. A quick history lesson, the Browns are 1-20-1 in opening games since 1999, have never beaten a team coached by Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes has never lost a game in September. Still, I would rather play Kansas City early then late in the season. If, and it’s a big if, the Browns can beat the Chiefs, their next three games are very winnable. At home vs. Houston and Chicago and on the road against the Vikings. The Minnesota game might be tough, but winnable.

The second quarter of the schedule has its good points and its bad points. First the Browns travel to L.A. for a game against the Chargers. Knowing both team’s fanbases, this will be a Browns home game. The Browns then play three consecutive home games, Arizona, Denver and Pittsburg. The bad, the Browns will only have four days after the Cardinal game to prepare for Denver, but then have ten days to prepare for their first divisional game against the Steelers. The ten days is a nice little mini bye week.

The next quarter of the schedule features three road games. At the Bengals, at New England, home against the Lions and the big Sunday night a game in Baltimore. This is an interesting part of the schedule because of what follows in the final five games. After the Ravens game, the Browns get their bye week and then face the Ravens again at home. So the Browns have three weeks to concentrate on one team, Baltimore. On a side note, while the Browns are on their bye, the Ravens play the Steelers.

The final four games are tough. At home against the Raiders, Christmas in Green Bay, Monday night at Pittsburg and at home against the Bengals. Another brief history lesson, the Browns have never beaten a team coached by John Gruden. Here’s where it gets interesting. Prior to playing the Browns, the Raiders have to go to Kansas City, the Packers have to go to Baltimore and the Steelers have to go to Kansas City. The Steelers game will probably Big Bens last home game. As for the Bengals, their two games prior to the Browns are at home versus the Ravens and the Chiefs.

Last year the Browns never lost two games in a row and looking at this years schedule I don’t see them losing consecutive games. Some fans don’t like the bye week at week thirteen. I like it. Like I said earlier, they have a mini bye week after the week seven Thursday night game. It also helps that during the three week span of week twelve through week fourteen, the Browns play one team, the Ravens. Plus, week thirteen is a nice time for a rest for a possible final playoff push. Everyone stay safe, get vaccinated and Go Browns.