Cleveland Browns activate cornerback Joe Haden

The Cleveland Browns received good news on Monday as the team activated cornerback Joe Haden from the PUP list.

Not content to let the offense have the entire spotlight, the Cleveland Browns activated cornerback Joe Haden on Monday.

While that is good news for a defensive secondary that has been missing its leader during the opening week of training camp, it is only the beginning steps of Haden’s return as he will ease his way back starting onto the field starting with individual drills.

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Haden opened training camp on the active/physically unable to perform (PUP) list following surgery in March on his ankle. It was the same ankle that he hurt last season, which along with a pair of concussions limited him to just five game.

The impact on the defense was profound, as the Browns fell flat from the opening game of the season in giving up 31 points to the New York Jets, one of nine times they gave up 30 or more points, and never found their footing.

Things haven’t looked any better through the early part of training camp as the Browns have used multiple cornerbacks with the first-team defense in Haden’s absence with increasingly diminishing results.

Excitement has been growing among Browns fans over the team’s improved offense after watching wide receivers Corey Coleman and Terrelle Pryor have big-time practices on Friday and Saturday, respectively. Of course, that overlooks that those numerous big plays have come at the expense of the Browns secondary, which should give fans pause about the Browns defense for the 2016 season.

“I’ve been working hard, I’ve been here the whole offseason and the training staff, we’ve been doing a really good job and we have a really good schedule and just getting better every day,” Haden said at the start of training camp. “I had high expectations for myself and I definitely didn’t live up to them. So I’m just ready to get back out there and prove that I’m still one of the best corners in the league.”

Haden has said from the beginning that he expects to be ready for the opening game of the 2016 season, which takes place on Sept. 11 against the Philadelphia Eagles, so today’s news is not that unexpected.

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But it is still good news that he is finally ready to get back on the field, even in a limited capacity, as the Browns secondary has shown they desperately need Haden.