Will Kenny Pickett take the first snap among the four active quarterbacks at Wednesday' open media OTA? Or will it be Joe Flacco? (Cleveland Browns)
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Editor's note: Tony Grossi is an analyst on the Cleveland Browns for TheLandOnDemand.com and 850 ESPN Cleveland. He has covered the Browns since 1984.
In the modern era of the NFL, meaning the last 20 years or so, no acronym has elicited more consternation than OTAs.
That is, organized team activities. A.k.a., professional touch football in helmets and shorts.
The NFL’s version of spring football practice always has been regarded as a nuisance. After all, the players union insists that attendance by players is voluntary and is no reflection on their commitment to the team.
The union remains steadfast in eliminating OTAs altogether, and will probably succeed in its next round of collective bargaining in exchange for the addition of an 18th game on the regular-season schedule.
Coaches regard OTAs as absolutely essential in team-building, in assimilating rookies and new veterans into their offensive and defensive systems, and in getting 90 players on the same page and prepared to hit the ground running when real practice starts in summer training camp.
This Browns OTA season is different from others, however.
With a pseudo “open competition” for the quarterback spot among four contenders, there is more anticipation and focus on the Browns’ OTA sessions than ever before.
The Browns have three OTA practices this week and three next week, followed by a three-day mandatory minicamp. Another three practices after the minicamp are scheduled, but could be tapered down.
Wednesday is the first practice open to media. There will be another next week. All three days of the minicamp are open.
So, the OTAs are the media’s first look at all four quarterbacks on the field together, and the first opportunity to see how the following issues are unfolding.
The quarterback ‘open competition’
The field:
* Joe Flacco: An old warhorse trying to recapture the month-long magic of 2023 and rekindle the love affair with the fans and the locker room.
* Kenny Pickett: A personal favorite of GM Andrew Berry whose demise as a Steelers’ first-round draft choice led to two trades in two years and a giant chip on his shoulder.
* Dillon Gabriel: The diminutive third-round draft choice can spin the ball from his left hand as well as anyone but must prove his 5-11 size won’t inhibit his ability to see the NFL field with rushers storming in on him.
* Shedeur Sanders: A celebrity quarterback in the most literal sense, he has sold more jerseys and accumulated more social media followers than any incoming NFL rookie and is the most celebrated fifth-round draft choice in league history.
While the Browns are far from selecting their starting quarterback for the season-opener, the OTAs may narrow the field so that reps in training camp won’t be wasted.
Coach Kevin Stefanski doesn’t want anyone to read anything into the order of QB reps and says a depth chart is far from being written. But … please … whoever takes the first snap is No. 1 in May and, to borrow Steelers coach Mike Tomlin’s term, is “the pole-sitter” to be the starting quarterback.
Who’s No. 2 at wide receiver?
OTA season is a passing camp. So other than the quarterbacks, the position group that can make the most strides is wide receiver.
To accommodate needed extra reps for the quarterbacks, the Browns added three wide receiver from their rookie minicamp tryouts and now have 12 on hand.
The one to watch is Diontae Johnson, the one-time 1,110-yard pass catcher of the Steelers who was traded twice and waived twice in 2024.
At his best, Johnson would fit as a No. 2 receiver behind Jerry Jeudy. At his worst, he could be a head case that leads to another Berry acquisition before or during training camp.
“Diontae’s a veteran that’s played at a high level,” Stefanski said on The Really Big Show on Friday. “We’ll see as he gets involved more. These OTAs will be really good for him because this system is new for him. But [we’re] excited about the skill set and he’s got to obviously prove it to us and he’s excited to do that.”
Turnover contagion
The only position group on defense that can shine is the defensive secondary – cornerbacks and safeties.
No pass rushing or tackling is allowed, but interceptions are OK. In 7-on-7 and 11-on-11 periods, defensive backs have the opportunity to break up passes and -- God forbid -- intercept them.
The Browns were so deficient in interceptions last year that any interception at practice – OTAs or training camp – generally elicits hootin’ and hollerin’ on the defensive sideline.
They say that turnovers are contagious, that one begats another, and so on. The Browns need to establish a ball-hawking mentality and the first place to do it is at OTAs.
OTAs will tell us nothing about …
* Defensive tackle and No. 5 overall pick Mason Graham’s ability to rush the passer.
* Linebacker and No. 33 overall pick Carson Schwesinger’s voracious tackling ability.
* Rookie running backs Quinshon Judkins’ and Dylan Sampson’s ability to run through tacklers and avoid them in the open field.
* The effectiveness of new offensive line coach Mike Bloomgren in restoring Bill Callahan’s wide-zone blocking scheme that was so mistakenly abandoned last season.
* Whether Dustin Hopkins has erased the bad muscle memory of his worst NFL season in 11 years.
Open media OTAs will tell us …
* If Myles Garrett, the Browns’ new $160 million man, has taken on the challenge imposed by owner Jimmy Haslam.
At the NFL annual meeting in March, Haslam said, “What we've challenged Myles on is by his practice habits, bits about his actions, et cetera, to become a real leader of the team. And he has said he'd do that and we're hopeful that he will do.”
Garrett has skipped OTAs in the past, but with a $1 million workout bonus written into his new contract, he is expected to be on hand.