Tight end David Njoku is smiling again after rescinding his trade request. (Cleveland Browns)
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Editor's note: Tony Grossi is a Cleveland Browns analyst for TheLandOnDemand.com and 850 ESPN Cleveland.
Takeaways from Zoom call with Browns GM Andrew Berry …
1. Putting out fires
First-time head coaches say it all the time, that the biggest transition to the job is learning to deal with five things a day that never before crossed their desk.
The same holds true for first-time general managers.
And so it was on the first Zoom call of training camp for Andrew Berry that the rookie GM had to douse the mini-brushfires set recently by Odell Beckham Jr. and David Njoku.
When Berry first took over as Browns GM in January, Beckham created headlines at the college football championship game in New Orleans. Beckham bizarrely passed out cash to LSU players after their victory over Clemson and then was served an arrest warrant for slapping a Superdome security officer on the butt.
Those incidents earned Beckham a visit to the offices of Berry and new coach Kevin Stefanski.
This week, Beckham was back in the news again for comments made to the Wall Street Journal that were critical of the NFL for forging on with plans for a football season amid the coronavirus pandemic. Beckham criticized owners for treating players like property and being more concerned with revenue than with player safety.
Berry struck the right chord when he said, “Having a player of Odell’s stature on the roster, obviously, he generates a lot of attention. Odell is very mindful that he has to be conscientious with his words. That being said, we have had plenty of dialogue and conversation with Odell, not only just through the summer but certainly as he has returned to Cleveland, and that has been a positive thing.
“We feel really good about everything that the league and the [NFL]PA have agreed upon and everything that we have done in Cleveland. I would say in terms of Odell, he has returned and really been focused on working hard. He has been very engaged in everything that we have done in the classroom. He is really focused on having a great year.”
Njoku stepped out of character last month when he requested a trade. Berry admitted he was surprised by the trade request. After assurances from Berry and Stefanski that Njoku is in their plans for this year, Njoku rescinded the trade request.
“He communicated well through it,” Berry said. “He worked through it professionally. We had good communication with his representation. We think we are in a pretty good place right now.”
Berry added, “We have been very consistent that we think David can be a big part of where we are trying to go as a team this year and that we think he has an important role to play for this roster and for this team. We are looking forward to working with David. I think he can have a fantastic year.”
These are issues Berry never had to deal with before in his 11 years as an NFL scout and personnel director.
The youngest GM in NFL history at 33, Berry received rave reviews for his first transaction season in charge. Now he is off to a good start as the de facto fire fighter of the organization.
2. Covid-19 roster challenges
Two more Browns chose to opt out from the 2020 season on Tuesday – defensive tackle Andrew Billings and guard Colby Gossett. They joined guard Drew Forbes and offensive tackle Drake Dorbeck, who announced their intentions last week.
Players have until 4 p.m. Thursday to opt out and qualify for collectively bargained benefits.
“For all those guys, it is deeply personal and an individual choice,” Berry said. “We will know at that time if there are more guys, but suffice it to say, organizationally, we support all those guys. We understand that it is a difficult decision, and again, it is very, very personal. We support the [four] guys who have opted out so far, and I look forward to them being back with the team next year.”
The league and players union have agreed to allow players to opt out beyond the Thursday deadline. The exceptions are for players who receive a new diagnosis that reveals a high-risk condition and for players who have a family member who dies, is hospitalized or is moved to a medical facility because of Covid-19 or a related condition.
More than 50 players have chosen to opt out so far.
3. Clearing hurdles
Every team is facing unique challenges this year, but there is no denying the challenges are steeper for a team with a first-year head coach and first-year GM, like the Browns.
Unfazed, Berry is projecting a sense of calm, optimism and encouragement.
It will be his job to pare the roster from 80 players to 53 without the benefit of an offseason program, minicamps or preseason games and after a condensed training camp fraught with inconveniences due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“It will be a little bit different on the pro [evaluation] side,” Berry said. “I think we will have plenty of opportunity to evaluate our own roster. I know we are starting a little bit later than normal, but we will have plenty of practices to see all of our veterans, see all of our bubble guys and see all of our young guys.
“If you think about it in a normal year, it is nice to have those preseason games, but really, the majority of the evaluation process does come throughout those daily practices.
“Probably where the biggest challenge comes is as you evaluate other rosters externally. Now, we still do have plenty of information from whether it is veterans across the league and their pro career or younger players in terms of their college career. It is always nice to have those call it 80 to 100 snaps during the preseason, but I feel confident that we will be able to navigate that really well once we get closer to the cut-down date.”