With the first couple of days of rookie minicamps in the books, we attempt to predict how the Cleveland Browns 53 man roster will look
This off-season has been one of the most active and exciting ones in recent Cleveland Browns history. New general manager John Dorsey has made a number of moves in trades, free agency and in the draft. All of which have Browns fans craving for the season to start.
At this point we can gauge how the team will look, but only 53 players are going to be on the team come September. From the outside looking in, the team is already better now than it was at any point in 2017.
Some names may be surprise cuts or even traded until then, but we can still see what Cleveland football will look like in 2018.
Quarterbacks (3): Tyrod Taylor, Drew Stanton, Baker Mayfield
This is the easiest group to predict. We have the incumbent starter and bridge player Tyrod Taylor, the dependable backup Drew Stanton, and the future of the franchise in Baker Mayfield.
All three will play in the preseason and likely all three will get a chance to shine.
All eyes will be on rookie Mayfield. Taylor has already been pegged as the day one starter, but things can change from now and September.
Running Backs (5): Nick Chubb, Carlos Hyde, Duke Johnson, Matthew Dayes, Dan Vitale
We start out with second-round pick Nick Chubb out of Georgia. Paired with him is the Bruising Buckeye, Carlos Hyde, and the Swiss Army Knife, Duke Johnson, who all complete what looks like the best running back group in the AFC North.
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Matthew Dayes probably won’t get any carries but he’s been very valuable on special teams, especially in the return game. He is undoubtedly the team’s top return man and could possibly push Jabrill Peppers and secure both return spots.
Dan Vitale is a good full back. He is one of the few players on the team who’s job is not only secure, but it would be pointless to sign another one for the preseason. If only to give him a break.
Offensive Line (8): Joel Bitonio, J.C. Tretter, Kevin Zeitler, Chris Hubbard, Austin Corbett, Shon Coleman, Donald Stephenson, Austin Reiter
The Browns have one of the leagues best interior offensive line groups in J.C. Tretter, Joel Bitonio and Kevin Zeitler. Their jobs aren’t in any jeopardy. The only questions are the tackle positions and the depth positions.
Chris Hubbard signed a big free agent contract with Cleveland is going to be the starter at right tackle. The blindside tackle is going to have some big shoes to fill, and it will come down to Austin Corbett and Shon Coleman. Coleman has the experience on his side, but Corbett being selected with the first pick in the second round is probably the writing on the wall.
Austin Reiter is a solid backup option to Tretter at the center position and doesn’t really have any competition for the job. No matter who loses the starting left tackle job, Donald Stephenson is going to be one of the back up tackles. He’s no threat for the starting spot but offers good outside depth.
Tight Ends (3): David Njoku, Seth DeValve, Darren Fells
Darren Fells and Seth DeValve are both solid blockers, which makes up for David Njoku‘s lack of blocking. Njoku is the best receiving tight end on the team and will be a fun weapon for Tyrod Taylor, and eventually Mayfield.
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Tight end is quietly one of the most complete position groups on the team. Njoku is the receiving threat, Fells is the great blocker and DeValve is the best of both worlds player. The three combined have made tight end a strength after it had been a weakness the past two seasons.
Receivers (6): Jarvis Landry, Josh Gordon, Corey Coleman, Antonio Callaway, Rashard Higgins, Damion Ratley
Jarvis Landry and Josh Gordon are the only players I’m positive are starters. Corey Coleman might still be traded or released before the season ends, but still is in the mix as the third receiver on the team.
Antonio Callaway is a wildcard player. Talent-wise, he could be an upgrade over Coleman, but he’ll need to overcome his skeletons in his closet. Maybe his new mentor, Antonio Brown, can help the Browns more than he would probably want to.
Rashard Higgins and Damion Ratley are purely second unit receivers who will predominantly play special teams. They are firmly stuck in competition for the fifth and sixth wide receiver positions.
Defensive Line (10): Myles Garrett, Emmanuel Ogbah, Carl Nassib, Chad Thomas, Chris Smith, Nate Orchard, Larry Ogunjobi, Caleb Brantley, Trevon Coley, Trenton Thompson
This defensive end group is deep, featuring starters Myles Garrett and Emmanuel Ogbah. Nassib, Orcahrd, free agent Chris Smith and third round draft pick Chad Thomas complete the squad. This edge rushing group could effectively run six deep and not lose a step.
The team only needs to keep four defensive tackles. Larry Ogunjobi looks like a potential star and has become a fan favorite. Trevon Coley was brought off the practice squad, and has made the most of his opportunities.
Caleb Brantley and Trenton Thompson have one word in common — steal. Caleb Brantley was drafted in the sixth but has shown so far to be more valuable than that, being a great rotation partner along the defensive line. Trenton Thompson is a steal in theory. He was graded to be drafted around the fourth round of the draft, and ended up being an undrafted free agent. He comes into a defensive line group that not only has a need for another defensive tackle, but is on the rise.
Linebackers (5): Joe Schobert, Jamie Collins, Christian Kirksey, James Burgess, Genard Avery
The starting group of Schobert, Collins and Kirksey is a good, complete group. However, the Achilles heel of the linebackers was their lack of depth, which showed when Jamie Collins went down.
James Burgess showed some promise last season, and gives the team a player who can play both spots on the outside. Schobert’s backup is fifth round pick, Genard Avery from Memphis. He’s only a rookie, but just about anything is an improvement for the Browns linebacker depth.
Secondary (10): E.J. Gaines, Denzel Ward, T.J. Carrie, Briean Boddy-Calhoun, Terrance Mitchell, Howard Wilson, Damarious Randall, Jabrill Peppers, Derrick Kindred, Simeon Thomas
If there’s any position group John Dorsey has experience with, it’s the defensive backs. Plenty of new faces will join a few familiar ones in 2018. I only expect four names from last season to reappear in the 2018 team.
Howard Wilson missed all of 2017 with an injury but I’m willing to give him the benefit of the doubt to be the backup to the outside along with free agent signee T.J.Carrie.
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The players they will be backing up are fourth-overall draft pick, Denzel Ward and a big free agent in E.J. Gaines. Both can be a pair of true number one corners to go against any outside pair of receivers.
Briean Boddy-Calhoun and Terrance Mitchell are both underrated, and both very good at playing the nickel corner position. I expect Boddy-Calhoun to be the starter, but Mitchell can easily come in and not miss a beat against slot receivers.
The trade for Damarious Randall, and subsequent position change to safety meant that Jabrill Peppers could move back to his natural spot at strong safety. Peppers was much better playing in that role rather than in the deep safety position, Randall played free safety in college so the position change shouldn’t be hard.
Behind them is Derrick Kindred who can give good depth behind Peppers, and sixth round draft pick Simeon Thomas. At 6-foot-4 and190-pounds, and skills at playing the zone, I expect Thomas to switch to free safety behind Randall. Neither will start, but will give some security at the number two positions.
I project the starters to be E.J Gaines and Denzel Ward at corner, Briean Boddy-Calhoun at the nickel, Damarious Randall at free safety and Jabrill Peppers at strong saftey. How does that sound?
Special Teams (3): Britton Colquitt, Zane Gonzalez, Charley Hughlett
Zane Gonzalez, going into his second season has shown some promise that he’s the franchise kicker. If you don’t think that’s a big deal, just wait until the team is down by two points with three seconds left tp go. Gonzalez is young but he’s got plenty of leg — hit a long of 54 yards as a rookie — and had decent accuracy (75 percent) to lead into his second season.
Britton Colquitt is a good punter, who hopefully the team won’t need to see as much as the did. Despite not having much of an offense in 2017, the Browns had good special teams units. Having a solid punter like Colquitt is a part of that and shouldn’t’ be taken for granted.
The award for biggest “who is he?” player on the Browns goes to the long snapper, Charley Hughlett. He’s not a flashy name, but it’s nice to know the team won’t mess up on snaps to the holder on field goals and extra points, or on punts.
Next: Uncertainty surrounds Duke Johnson
You probably never hear his name, and all that means is he’s still out there just doing his job the right way. Dependability makes someone less expendable. Why else would the team have given him a six-year contract last year?