Cleveland Browns: 3 Surprises after first 5 days of camp

Five days of training camp are done for the Cleveland Browns as we pause to look back at three of the biggest surprises to this point

The Cleveland Browns took their first day off in training camp as they held no practices on Tuesday. This pause after five workdays gives us a chance to look back over the first portion of camp and reflect on what has happened.

So far, head coach Freddie Kitchens has exerted his authority as he made the team run gassers following a fight between defensive end Chad Thomas and tight end Pharaoh Brown. We’ve also seen Baker Mayfield become a bigger vocal leader as he enters his first camp as the unquestioned starter.

Those developments are less than surprising as we all knew Kitchens and Mayfield would settle into their roles nicely. That doesn’t mean there weren’t a few surprises throughout the first five days, and here we look at three things that stood out so far.

Quick Hits

Tight end David Njoku was challenged this offseason by general manager John Dorsey who wanted to see more from him in the blocking game. Without many padded practices yet, it’s hard to tell how that’s going for the third-year tight end.

What we can see is the continued struggles with consistency as a receiver. Njoku is an athletic freak at his position but oftentimes goes silent. If he’s ever to hit his potential, he needs to find a way to play consistent football.

It’s not a surprise if you listened to the praise of the coaching staff this offseason, but Dontrell Hilliard is making plays in camp. He continues to take advantage of the reps left to him by Duke Johnson who skipped OTAs and is now dealing with a hamstring injury.

Hilliard could also find himself the primary option in the return game, a spot vacated when Jabrill Peppers was sent to the New York Giants in the Odell Beckham, Jr. trade.