Cleveland Browns 3 biggest training camp surprises in 2023

The Cleveland Browns are about to wrap up their 2023 training camp as they're preparing for their final game of the preseason. They'll be heading to Arrowhead Stadium to take on the Kansas City Chiefs — and head coach Kevin Stefanski said some of the starters will get snaps in this one.

With the exhibition games coming to an end, let's take a look back at training camp and identify three players who were pleasant surprises for the Browns.

3. Mohamoud Diabate, Linebacker

It was easy to see a shift in personnel philosophy after Jim Schwartz was named as the defensive coordinator of the Cleveland Browns. Schwartz wanted larger defensive linemen than Joe Woods preferred and also made sure to shore up the back end of their coverage with Juan Thornhill and Rodney McLeod.

The one area where they didn't make changes was at linebacker. Instead, the Browns re-signed Anthony Walker and Sione Takitaki who will start alongside Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah. The only real additions wound up being Matthew Adams, who is known for his special teams prowess, and undrafted free agent Mohamoud Diabate.

Originally at Florida, Diabate transferred to Utah for his final collegiate season and had 58 tackles with five sacks for the Utes. He was an intriguing prospect due to his ability to rush the passer off the edge and throughout training camp, he was making one play after another.

This continued into the preseason and he even recorded a safety and forced a fumble in their tie with the Philadelphia Eagles.

Diabate is still on the edge of the roster bubble but with Jacob Phillips out for the year, it wouldn't be a surprise at all to see him make the cut.