Cleveland Browns: Undrafted linebacker Willie Harvey turning heads at camp
By Randy Gurzi
The Cleveland Browns signed Willie Harvey as a free agent out of Iowa State after he went undrafted and he’s been turning heads since joining the team
Despite being an honorable mention All-Big 12 the final three years of his collegiate career, linebacker Willie Harvey went undrafted out of Iowa State. He was even skipped over during the first rounds of UDFA signings but did receiver an invitation to the Cleveland Browns rookie minicamp on a tryout basis.
He made the most of that opportunity as ended up being signed to a contract by the Browns. Since then, he’s continued to impress the team and is reportedly making his presence felt throughout the first weeks of their 2019 training camp.
Recently, Maurice Moton of Bleacher Report picked one undrafted free agent from all 32 teams who are turning heads and Harvey was the player he selected for Cleveland. Moton says that it’s the energy Harvey is showing in his pursuits that are making him stand out and adds that linebacker is one position where this really matters.
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He also was spotted by the crew at ‘The Browns Wire’ as they simply tweeted out the following:
"“Willie Harvey can hit. Lots of energy from the UDFA LB”"
Slightly undersized at 6-foot-0 and 224-pounds, Harvey has never been afraid to get after the ball carrier. In four seasons with the Cyclones, he has 289 tackles — 31 of which went for a loss — as well as 12.5 sacks. Harvey added an interception, 11 pass breakups and forced five fumbles.
As for his chances of making the 53-man roster as a rookie, Harvey is honestly in the best position he possibly could have found himself.
Last year, Cleveland was dangerously thin at the position and general manager John Dorsey went out to do all he could to try and find players who could help them not only have more bodies available but to also improve the unit as a whole. Cleveland suffered through injuries to Joe Schobert and Christian Kirksey last year and this season, they decided to make sure they had some young linebackers ready to step up if needed.
Dorsey added Adarius Taylor in free agency (after releasing Jamie Collins) and then selected Sione Takitaki and Mack Wilson in the 2019 NFL Draft.
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Harvey will be behind all of them but it was clear that this team wanted to make some changes to this positional group. Should Harvey continue to impress, he could very well find himself making the final cuts.