Leftover takeaways from Browns rookie minicamp …
The only two defensive players among the Browns’ draft class of 10 share at least one characteristic.
Toledo safety Emmanual McNeil-Warren (second round) and Alabama linebacker Justin Jefferson (fifth round) might get on the field at different points of their rookie seasons. But both impressed the Browns with their passion and love for the game.
“[McNeil-Warren] is long, fast, anticipating, physical, got unbelievable range,” coach Todd Monken said. “He’s another one of those guys that has a smile on his face every day. Loves football. It’s what we saw when we met with him at the Combine, when he came here. Like, I think the sky’s the limit. He wants to be an elite football player, and he goes about it the right way every day.”
Jefferson was one of the most vocal players on the field during the weekend minicamp.
“No, it’s not hard to see the guys that love football, is it?” Monken said. “It’s pretty simple. You show up to practice, you guys are looking the same thing I’m looking at, right? You can see with JJ, a guy that loves to play football, comes in the building ready to go. He’s jocked up, ready to go. I love that about guys and you can just see it. You can just feel it. You can feel the guys when you come out to the practice field, they’re ready to go, the music’s going, they’re fired up and those guys are fun to coach.”
A very Green QB
There’s a lot to like about Taylen Green, the freak athletic QB from Arkansas, such as his size (6-6, 230 pounds), speed, and ability to spin the ball rather effortlessly.
But it was also evident how Green could last until the sixth round when every NFL team craves a developmental quarterback with plus physical traits.
Fundamentals such as footwork, cadence [barking out signals at the line of scrimmage], and release of the ball were obvious points of emphasis with Monken.
“Getting used to our cadence, early on, and he was better [Day 2], but this morning and yesterday, choppy with his cadence,” Monken said on Saturday. “So just getting our guys into a rhythm at the line of scrimmage, I think that was the second thing he needed to work on. He did a nice job today of working through his progressions. I did like that part of it.”
There’s a reason that few quarterbacks of 6-6 and taller have success in the NFL. The long, extended arm windup might look great on the practice field, but it becomes a hindrance when the pocket collapses in the heat of a pass rush.
The best at that height in recent times have been Joe Flacco, Justin Herbert, Nick Foles and Trevor Lawrence.
The not-so-great: Dan McGwire, Brock Osweiler, Paxson Lynch, Mike Glennon.
“We’re gonna have to be really diligent in trying to tighten down his release,” Monken said of Green. “When you’re talking about checkdowns taken from [the] long release, he has to just be able to dart it — to get it quickly out of his hands and into the hands of the running back or a tight end.”
What separates Green from all the tall quarterbacks, however, is his foot speed (4.36 in the 40) and vertical leap (43.5 in.). No quarterback in Combine history posted comparable numbers.
For the record, Michael Vick, considered by many as the best dual-threat QB of all time, measured 6-0 and 210, clocked a 4.33 40, and vertical-leaped 38 in.
Lamar Jackson (6-2, 205) did not run the 40 or do the vertical at the 2018 Combine or at his Louisville pro day.
A Sorsby connection
Tight end Joe Royer reinvented himself in two years at Cincinnati (79 receptions, 938 yards, 7 TD) with Brendan Sorsby as Bearcats quarterback.
Sorsby transferred to Texas Tech and is contemplating a jump to the NFL via the supplemental draft if he loses his college eligibility because of a gambling investigation. He is undergoing counseling for gambling addiction, according to a Texas Tech announcement.
“I firmly believe he’s a first-round talent,” Royer said. “He has all the tools that make up a great and successful quarterback. He’s big, he’s quick, he’s got the arm strength, he’s smart, as well. The sky’s the limit for Brendan.”
Royer was not asked if he and teammates were aware of Sorsby’s gambling problem at Cincinnati. The extent of that problem will dictate how soon Sorsby enters the NFL and whether a team like the Browns will bid a high (second round) 2027 pick on him if he enters the supplemental draft in July.
Brownie bits
Center Parker Brailsford is undersized (6-1 7/8, 289), but the Browns believe his quickness and ability to get to the second level of a defense is more important than his size. Brailsford cited Jason Kelce (6-3, 295), formerly of the Eagles, and Miami’s Aaron Brewer (6-1, 295) as centers he studied …
When practice got ragged or too competitive, Monken had players take off their helmets and retreated to what he called “an ACT period – which means alignment, communication and technique – more of a mental sweat. Really trying to tax our guys. Because at the end of this, the goal at the end of the minicamp is to make it out healthy. And I wanted to make sure of that.” …
On the weekend he was drafted in the first round, KC Concepcion took note of his history of drops at North Carolina State and Texans A&M and said, “I am going to work non-stop to fix that.” In two days of minicamp practices open to media, it was evident that more work must be done …
The Browns added another cornerback, Michael Coats, undrafted from Virginia. Tight end Sal Cannella was waived.