4 Takeaways from Cleveland Browns ugly padded practice on Monday
By Randy Gurzi
3. Njoku struggling early
Monday wasn’t the best day for tight end David Njoku. The Cleveland Browns tight end is fighting for a role in this offense now that Austin Hooper was brought in. Hooper is clearly the No. 1 guy and Njoku should be the second tight end but there are concerns about his blocking — which is going to be in demand as the second tight end.
His skill as a receiver is supposed to be what makes up for his deficiencies there but on Monday, that was also a problem. As Scott Petrak of Browns Zone pointed out, he missed two passes that he should have hauled in — including the first one of the day.
"“The first play of the first team drill in pads was a short incompletion to Njoku in traffic. Mayfield came back to him quickly, and Njoku dropped a pass on a corner route. He also had a high pass from Mayfield go off his hands along the sideline.” — Petrak, Browns Zone"
In addition to his drops, Njoku was also responsible for not lining up correctly on one play as well.
It might not have been a coincidence that Harrison Bryant was targeted a lot in practice after that as the coaching staff could have been sending a message to Njoku. Harrison, a fourth-round pick from FAU, is another great receiving option at the position and could take snape away from the former first-round pick.