Cleveland Browns rookies report to training camp today

The Cleveland Browns officially open preparations for the 2017 NFL season today as rookies are scheduled to report to training camp.

It has been more than six months since the Cleveland Browns last played a game that mattered.

It has been almost three months since the Browns continued to transform the roster during the 2017 NFL Draft.

The wait is over, however, Browns fans as today is the day that the rookies report to training camp at team headquarters in Berea. The veterans will report on July 26 and training camp will officially open on July 27.

The Browns are officially back.

The opening of training camp will give the coaching staff its first real look at the rookie class, one of the most-anticipated groups in recent years for the Browns. The group is led by defensive end Myles Garrett, the No. 1 overall selection in the draft and who was last sign at Cleveland-Hopkins Airport with a walking boot on his injured ankle.

Things have been quite about Garrett’s recovery over the past few weeks, which we’ll take as a good sign.

Garrett and fellow first-round selection tight end David Njoku will be joined by quarterback DeShone Kizer, defensive tackle Larry Ogunjobi, offensive tackle Roderick Johnson, defensive tackle Caleb Brantley, kicker Zane Gonzalez and running back Matthew Dayes.

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Garrett is a lock to hold down one of the starting defensive end positions, and Ogunjobi should see considerable time at the defensive tackle rotation. Brantley has promise, but questions continue to circle about his ability to put out a consistent effort.

While he shouldn’t be, Kizer will be talked about as a potential starter for the season’s first game. Luckily that talk should end in about a month as head coach Hue Jackson will likely name his starter shortly before or after the second preseason friendly on Aug. 21 against the New York Giants.

Still, the quarterback competition between Kizer, Cody Kessler and Brock Osweiler should be far more entertaining that last year’s training camp battle, which featured regular updates about Robert Griffin III throwing the ball in the backyards of neighboring houses.

Absent from that list is cornerback Howard Wilson, who suffered a knee injury during minicamp. While it was not as significant as first feared and Howard was able to avoid surgery, the timetable for his return is still a bit murky.

What’s that? There is another draft pick? Oh yeah – the Browns also selected safety Jabrill Peppers in the first round. But Peppers is still unsigned – joining defensive lineman Solomon Thomas of the San Francisco 49ers, wide receiver Corey Davis of the Tennessee Titans, and cornerback Gareon Conley of the Oakland Raiders as the only first-round selections who have yet to ink their rookie contracts.

While it would be nice if Peppers was in the building today with the rest of the rookies, and he is not scoring any points with defensive coordinator Gregg Williams – the reality is that as long as he is signed and ready to go when the Browns hit the field later this week, everything should be fine.

Next: Myles Garrett appears ready for training camp

This will be the second training camp under Jackson, meaning that the Browns should be nearing the end of the beginning of their massive rebuilding efforts. There is still considerable work to be done, but today marks another milestone in the journey toward being a legitimate NFL franchise.

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