It's been a busy offseason for the Cleveland Browns. We're just over one week into the new year and they've already filled just about every hole they had on their roster, which sets them up nicely for the NFL Draft.
With the new faces in Berea, it's already looking rough for a few returning players. Here, we look at four Browns who are highly unlikely to make the cut to the 53-man roster in Week 1 of the 2023 season.
Browns potential cut No. 4: Demetric Felton, RB/WR
When Demetric Felton was selected in the sixth round of the 2021 NFL Draft, he was an intriguing addition. While playing for UCLA, he spent time as both a running back and wide receiver and had the ability to return kicks as well.
His versatility helped him make the roster and appear in 16 games as a rookie but he never seemed to have a true role. He finished with just seven rushes for 24 yards that year but had 18 catches for 181 yards and two touchdowns. Throw in his 227 yards on punt returns and 172 on kickoffs and it seemed he would be more involved in year two.
That ended up not being the case as he had one rush and just two receptions in eight games. He also lost his return duties as he struggled to field the ball cleanly.
Now with Jakeem Grant back on a team-friendly deal, it seems as though Felton will have no shot of making the roster without injuries happening ahead of him. It's almost unfair as his versatility meant he didn't spend enough time at running back early on and that would have been his best shot at making the team this year.
Browns potential cut No. 3: Tommy Togiai, DT
A fourth-round pick in 2021, Tommy Togiai was an instant favorite since he came from Ohio State. Despite the fact that the NFL is full of Buckeyes, Cleveland hasn't really taken a lot of players from the program — although they did have a lot of success with Denzel Ward who they added in 2018.
Togiai wasn't a high pick like Ward (who was No. 4 overall) but he still had a decent collegiate career and played a position of need. That meant he would at least have a shot of not only making the team but possibly being a regular contributor.
Heading into his third season, that hasn't been the case. Togiai has played in 18 games with two starts but has just 348 snaps. His stat line is also minimal with only 29 tackles and one sack in that time. And it seems as though he's about to be the odd man out.
Cleveland added three defensive tackles so far with Dalvin Tomlinson, Maurice Hurst, and Trysten Hill. They did lose Taven Bryan and Hurst seems like a shot in the dark due to his injury history but Togiai is still in a tough spot.
Taking Hurst out of the equation, he still has Perrion Winfrey, Jordan Elliott, abd Roderick Perry to contend with, in addition to Tomlinson and Hill. With that being the case, it;s hard to see any scenario where he makes the roster in Week 1.
Browns potential cut No. 2: Anthony Schwartz, WR
From Round 3 on, the 2021 NFL Draft wasn't exactly kind to the Browns. After landing Greg Newsome II in Round 1 and Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah in the second, their success rate fell off.
Cleveland added two players already mentioned on this list in Tommy Togiai and Demtric Felton. There was also Richard LeCounte (who is already gone) and James Hudson. Tony Fields was a selection in Round 5 and he's been a decent find but he's the outlier.
Of course, the most disappointing selection in that class has to be Anthony Schwartz, who was added in Round 3. The 91st overall pick, Schwartz was brought in due to his immense speed. General manager Andrew Berry knew he was a work in progress but he ran the 40-yard dash in under 4.3 seconds and was a track star at Auburn.
Unfortunately, he hasn't developed as they hoped. In two years, Schwartz has just 14 receptions for 186 yards and a touchdown. He does have 10 rushes for 96 yards and another score but in order to make the team this year, he needs to do more than run the end around. Due to that lack of growth as a wideout, he's been on the bubble all offseason.
On Friday, any slim chance Schwartz had of making the team seemed to go out the window when they agreed to terms with Marquise Goodwin on a one-year deal. Goodwin is another track star but he's a far superior receiver to the current speedster. Right now, he's in line for the WR4 spot and that could spell the end for Schwartz, especially if they add another wideout in the draft which could very well happen.
Browns potential cut No. 1: Kellen Mond, QB
While preparing for the start of the 2022 campaign, there were some concerns about the quarterback position in Cleveland. They knew Deshaun Watson would be suspended and for 11 games, Jacoby Brissett was expected to start.
Brissett had experience as a starter, mainly with the Indianapolis Colts, but there wasn't much depth behind him. Josh Dobbs was the primary candidate for the No. 2 spot but he hardly made any appearances in the regular season during his career.
That's why the Browns decided to put in a claim for Kellen Mond when he was waived by the Minnesota Vikings.
The thought process was logical as they let go of Isaac Rochell to make room for Mond, and then brought Rochell back on the practice squad. So in the end, they lost no one and were able to bring in a third-round pick from the prior season.
Mond even remained with the team when Watson was reinstated and that led to the release of Dobbs, who was a preseason hero. That proved to be the best thing that could have happened to him as Dobbs made a quick pitstop in Detroit before landing with the Tennessee Titans — where he made two starts. Tennessee lost both games but Dobbs played well considering he had almost no time to learn the playbook.
This helped him land a new contract with Cleveland and he's expected to be the primary reserve now that Brissett is in Washington.
With so many skill players and defensive linemen added in free agency, it would seems likely they go with just two quarterbacks on the roster this year and given Dobbs' performance last year, he's the most trustworthy — which leaves Mond on the outside looking in.