Cleveland Browns: 5 players who could still surprisingly be cut

2. EDGE Porter Gustin

It’s not easy to find a better fourth or fifth EDGE than Porter Gustin. He had some big moments in 2020, and started three games. He played more than the team would have liked as Myles Garrett, Olivier Vernon, and Adrian Clayborn all missed time, which forced the backups into the spotlight.

Gustin was incredibly productive at USC, and is a very good athlete, but injuries led to him going undrafted. He’s tallied one sack, four QB hits, and 43 tackles over 20 professional games, and he now has plenty of competition to make the roster, unless the Browns are willing to keep a total of 10 defensive linemen, which, while not impossible, is unlikely.

What hurts Gustin in comparison to the other contenders is his lack of versatility. He doesn’t provide the ability to move inside, which would give him a leg up if he could. The defensive tackle room is full of unknowns, but there’s a ton of talent there.

At EDGE, Takk McKinely will serve as the first guy off the bench, with Curtis Waver serving as Gustin’s biggest threat. Weaver was a sack master at Boise State and has elite bend and short-area agility, but didn’t have an NFL body or explosiveness in camp with the Miami Dolphins, and was cut after a week despite having been a fifth-round pick.

According to general manager Andrew Berry, Weaver has transformed his body and reportedly impressed at training camp. He looks a lot bigger than the 265 pounds he entered the league at, so maybe he can move inside.

Wild card Malik McDowell may just be the second-most-talented player on the Cleveland roster, and would provide power EDGE flexibility in addition to inside disruption if he can make the team.

Gustin is an NFL player, and likely deserves to be on this team. The question is if there will be enough spots to fit all the defensive linemen.