The Browns have added two players in two days, but Logan Ryan, a veteran cornerback who could replace Grant Delpit at safety, is not one of them. Could he be next? (nbcsports.com)
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Editor's note: Tony Grossi is a Cleveland Browns analyst for TheLandOnDemand.com and 850 ESPN Cleveland.
Takeaways from a Browns off day prior to their most important stretch of training camp practices …
With the Browns having depth concerns at cornerback and safety, guard and linebacker, GM Andrew Berry made a couple of curious roster additions the past two days.
On Wednesday, he claimed wide receiver Damion Willis, a Cincinnati Bengals discard who actually made two starts as an undrafted free agent from Troy in 2019. Willis has premium size (6-3 and 204 pounds) and had seven receptions of over 40 yards in his last college season.
The day before, Berry claimed defensive end Curtis Weaver, who was waived/injured by the Miami Dolphins after suffering a foot injury. Some believe the Dolphins tried to sneak Weaver through waivers so that they could put him on injured reserve without sacrificing a roster spot. Several teams were interested him, per reports.
Weaver (6-2 ½, 265 pounds) was projected for the second or third round in the 2020 draft after breaking Jerry Hughes’ Mountain West Conference career sack record with 34 for Boise State. The Dolphins traded up for Weaver in the fifth round and were lauded for making a value pick.
There’s a chance Weaver won’t be ready to play for months, if at all in 2020.
So what is up with these moves? Why add a receiver when the Browns seem overloaded already in an offense that values tight ends? Why add a defensive end who might not play all season?
With the fate of college football tied to the uncertainties of the coronavirus, Berry and his football staff are getting a head start on the 2021 transaction season.
The 2021 college draft may be the greatest crapshoot ever because many prospects won’t even play a game. If teams have good grades on 2020 prospects that become available, they will be more inclined to add them now.
That appears to be what Berry is doing. There will probably be more of these additions prior to NFL roster cuts to 53 on Sept. 5.
Safety dance
The market for unsigned safeties picked up this week when two safeties taken in the second round suffered major injuries.
The Browns lost Grant Delpit to an Achilles tendon rupture and the Giants lost Xavier McKinney to a foot injury. Delpit is out for the year and will have surgery. McKinney may not be done for the year even though he reportedly had surgery on Wednesday.
McKinney, of Alabama, was taken 36th overall by the Giants; Delpit was taken 44th overall after the Browns traded down three spots.
These injuries will stir up a veteran safety market headlined by disgraced Earl Thomas, recently released by the Ravens after suspect conduct; Logan Ryan, who’s been idle since Pick 6-ing Tom Brady’s last-ever pass in a Patriots uniform in the AFC playoffs; and Tony Jefferson, who’s been idle since tearing an ACL in October.
Thomas has character concerns and Jefferson has publicly stated he would not play for any team in the AFC North other than the Ravens, for whom he started for three seasons.
That leaves Ryan for the Browns to sign to replace Delpit.
Ryan, 29, has started 85 games at cornerback in five seasons with the Patriots and three with the Titans.
But Ryan has morphed into a quasi-safety in later years. With Tennessee in 2019. According to Pro Football Focus, Ryan lined up 21 times along the defensive line, 180 times close to the line in the “tackle box,” 855 times opposite the slot receiver, 243 times as an outside cornerback, and 22 times at deep safety.
One reason Ryan is still unsigned: Reports are that he is seeking a one-year prove-it deal for $10 million – the same yearly average of his three-year Tennessee contract that expired after the 2019 season.
4-2-5 or 4-3
The loss of Delpit leaves Browns defensive coordinator Joe Woods in a quandary.
He hoped to exploit Delpit as a chess piece in a three-safety “dime” defensive alignment that would replace a third linebacker against three-receiver formations.
Woods now must revisit the 4-2-5 concept unless a suitable replacement for Delpit is acquired by Berry. The Browns’ obvious shortcomings at linebacker – in the wake of the knee injury to Mack Wilson – will also play a role in Woods’ thinking.
“Grant was ideal in terms of his versatility,” Woods said on Tuesday. “He could play strong, free or he could play the dime. That is kind of what I ran when I was in Denver. We were based on a dime. I still want to be able to run that package, but we are really going have to evaluate where we are with our linebackers and with our secondary in terms of what we can do, but I believe I am going to try to do both.”
Ryan would seem to be the best available player for the Browns to pursue to replace Delpit. Will they cough up $10 million for him?