The 5 Biggest Issues Facing Cleveland Browns with OTAs Wrapped
The Cleveland Browns' final phase of OTA practices is over, which means only mandatory minicamp is left before the team meets for full training camp later this summer.
OTAs can help a team to see where it is at in terms of positional depth and the players' grasp of the offensive and defensive concepts already installed. But they don't solve every issue a team has in the offseason. Here are the five biggest issues the Browns are still facing after OTAs.
Where Does Danny Shelton Fit In?
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The Browns selected defensive tackle Danny Shelton with the 12th overall pick in the 2015 NFL draft, but they have spent scant time with the rookie. He has chosen to graduate on time—on June 14—from the University of Washington, which means he cannot join his team for on-field practices until mandatory minicamp begins on June 16. He has only been in town for rookie minicamp to this point.
Shelton is expected to be the starting nose tackle this year, but without the coaches having taken a good look at him on the field with the rest of his teammates, they won't know what he's capable of until minicamp begins. Then, they can finally craft a role for him this year.
That's not to say that Shelton can't be a quick study or will be too far behind his teammates to catch up enough to become a starter come September. But, until minicamp, his contributions are merely hypothetical as of now.
The Next Step for Johnny Manziel?
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Browns head coach Mike Pettine made it clear before the start of OTAs that there would be no competition between quarterbacks Josh McCown and Johnny Manziel and that McCown is the starter for now.
But OTAs are over. Though it's likely that this quarterback pecking order will extend through mandatory minicamp, once training camp begins, it will be interesting to see if the division of labor between the two quarterbacks changes.
Will Manziel get time with the first-team offense? Will Pettine ever declare an open competition between the two signal-callers? Or is McCown not just the summertime starter but the de facto No. 1 headed into Week 1?
Manziel's fate in 2015 has yet to be decided. And it's something the Browns coaches will have to think about in the weeks leading up to training camp.
Sorting out the Cornerbacks
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The Cleveland Browns know who at least one of their starting cornerbacks are in 2015—Joe Haden, the longstanding leader of their defense. It is assumed that veteran free-agent signing Tramon Williams will work alongside him on the outside, but even that is not as set in stone as Haden's current job.
And in the slot? That could go a number of directions.
K'Waun Williams appears to have the edge, looking sharp in OTAs this year. But Justin Gilbert is not far behind, with coaches and teammates alike noticing he's far more focused than he was during his rocky rookie year. Pierre Desir, too, could be in the mix for the third cornerback job.
The summer will be the proving ground for the three second-year cornerbacks. For now, the Browns don't have that position completely set for 2015.
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What to Expect from Tashaun Gipson
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Browns safety Tashaun Gipson has sat out OTAs. Though they are voluntary, he is working out in Texas because he's unsatisfied with his compensation for 2015—a second-round restricted free-agent tender worth $2.536 million this year. He hasn't signed the tender, though if he doesn't by June 15, he could see that salary slashed considerably.
Cornerback Joe Haden said in May that he does not expect Gipson to miss any mandatory workouts, including the upcoming mandatory minicamp or training camp later in the summer. But there have been no updates lately as to Gipson's status, the Browns' interest in giving him a long-term deal or when this standoff will end.
Gipson is an integral part of the secondary. He has 11 interceptions over his last two seasons. Without him, the Browns defense would take a considerable hit, as evidenced by the team's performance after his knee injury late in 2014.
When will he show up? No one, except Gipson, really knows.
Where Will Cameron Erving Line Up?
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The Browns see a lot of promise in rookie offensive lineman Cameron Erving. And he's been a main focus of the team's OTA workouts, mainly because he has played nearly every position on the offensive line.
Browns offensive line coach Andy Moeller, via the Akron Beacon Journal's Nate Ulrich, said at the close of OTAs on Thursday that this rotation will continue through the summer, which means more looks at Erving at guard, tackle and even center.
Where that will land him, though, no one yet knows. He seems destined for the right side of the line, either at guard, where John Greco played last year, or tackle, where Mitchell Schwartz played. And wherever Erving lands will mean either Greco or Schwartz gets sent to the bench.
There's no question that Erving will be a starter in his rookie season. But the position he'll be playing will have to make itself clearer as the summer wears on.
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