Cleveland Browns Preseason: Week 3 Stock Report

The Cleveland Browns wrapped training camp earlier in the week, but that doesn't mean the offseason is over. There are still practices taking place, and of course, there are two more preseason games left to play before the Browns have to reduce their roster to 53 players.

That means jobs are still up for grabs at this point in the summer. Here are the Browns players who have been doing themselves favors in the past week and those who haven't.

Stock Down: QB Josh McCown

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For now, Browns quarterback Josh McCown is in no danger of losing hold of the starting job for at least the first week of the regular season. However, should his performance against the Buffalo Bills in the Browns' Week 2 preseason game start to repeat itself early in the year, the team may have no choice but to make a change.

McCown completed seven of his 10 pass attempts last week for 57 yards. But the completion percentage did not come close to telling the whole story. He was also sacked three times and picked off twice in his appearance against Buffalo's brutal first-team defense, echoing struggles with pressured decision-making that has plagued McCown throughout his career.

It was not a pretty performance for a quarterback who had spent his summer drawing praise from teammates and coaches alike. McCown needs to rebound on Saturday against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to further justify why the Browns are turning to him to lead the offense this season.

Stock Up: DL Dylan Wynn

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On many other teams, undrafted rookie defensive lineman Dylan Wynn may have little-to-no chance of making the 53-man roster. But with the Browns, who run a variety of defensive fronts and do so while constantly rotating their personnel, Wynn has ample opportunity to carve out a spot for himself.

According to Pro Football Focus, Wynn has played 36 snaps in the preseason thus far and has earned a positive grade as a pass-rusher, totaling one quarterback hit and two hurries. Though he's typically a defensive end, the Browns have also used him as an outside linebacker. While this is in response to injuries the Browns have suffered in their linebacker depth, it also speaks to Wynn's versatility.

Defensive coordinator Jim O'Neil pegged Wynn as one of his training-camp standouts, saying on Monday, per the team's website: "I just love how he plays the game, what he represents as a person. He's going to give you everything he has. He's had to play out of position some for us, just because of injury but he's a guy I've really been impressed with."

When it comes to making the 53-man roster, Wynn said to ClevelandBrowns.com: "I want to take the decisions out of the coaches' hands. I want to play so good that they have no choice, basically. That's my goal."

If he plays the final two preseason games the way he played in his first two, that could certainly come to pass. 

Stock Down: WR Terrelle Pryor

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The Browns brought on Terrelle Pryor during the gulf of time between June minicamp and start of training camp in July. A quarterback-turned-wide receiver, Pryor would need as many training-camp reps as possible to help smooth the transition to his new position. But after four days of practices, he tweaked his hamstring. 

Pryor attempted to return to the practice field in last week's joint sessions with the Buffalo Bills but aggravated the hamstring and has been on the sidelines since.

According to the team website, head coach Mike Pettine said on Monday that the team is "hopeful" that Pryor can play in Saturday's game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but he added: "If the guys haven't [practiced] by Thursday then they are not going to go. Primarily the guys that haven't been out there for a while you want to see them go Wednesday or it will be much less likely that they will go."

With Pryor missing so much time, offensive coordinator John DeFilippo said, "There's got to be a sense of urgency from Terrelle and I'll be the first person to say that." And Browns insiders speaking with Scout.com's Lane Adkins added that Pryor making the final roster is "a tough call right [now] to be perfectly honest."

Though the insiders did conclude that, "This may be the case where you find a way to keep a player due to his special ability," a lot of other young receivers have proved their worth to the Browns during the summer. If Pryor continues to be sidelined during preseason games, his chances of making the final roster decrease.

Stock Up: S Ibraheim Campbell

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Rookie safety Ibraheim Campbell, selected in Round 4 of this year's draft, has benefited the most from the spate of injuries that have struck his position this summer. And he's making the most out of his opportunities. 

According to ClevelandBrowns.com, defensive coordinator Jim O'Neil said on Monday that Campbell "has done a great job at safety, he has played almost the entire two preseason games and I think you've been able to see how physical he's going to be in the run game. He's where he's supposed to be in the pass game and I think he's only going to get better as he spends time in the system."

Campbell's 96 preseason snaps played thus far are the most of any Browns defender, and his plus-3.1 overall grade from Pro Football Focus is the team's highest among the defensive backs. In fact, he's the site's fifth-best safety in the preseason and has totaled eight tackles through two games.

It's often the case during training camp and the preseason that a younger player gets additional reps because of injuries. Some rise to that occasion, while others wilt. Campbell is firmly in the former category, and the more preseason playing time he gets, the better a player he'll become.

Stock Down: CB Justin Gilbert

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It's going to take more than improved technique for cornerback Justin Gilbert to bounce back this year—it will also take improved confidence. 

Browns defensive coordinator Jim O'Neil does think that Gilbert is "further along than where he was last year," though he added, "I still think he has some ground to make up," and that, "you have to have confidence to play out there, especially in our scheme."

So what is Gilbert's problem? O'Neil acknowledged that Gilbert did not—and did not have to—play with technique in college, but in the NFL, things have changed drastically.

"There's a lot of guys in college that are unbelievable athletes who are so gifted, they can just go out there and dominate," O'Neil said. "There are a lot of guys like that. You're not going to get away with that at this level, everybody's gifted. So, you better have technique at this level if you're going to be successful."

That's not to say that O'Neil and the Browns have given up on Gilbert. But progress is necessary. Head coach Mike Pettine added that: "There are guys, and [Gilbert] is not the only one, where they can show the technique on the practice field. You have to be able to take the next step. Sometimes you get in a game and you revert back to poor habits."

But it's not all lost yet, because, as Pettine said, "[Gilbert] is a guy that has been receptive to coaching and he has taken a step in the right direction that way."

But, as O'Neil pointed out: "At the end of the day you have to be able to fall back on your technique and your teaching. To me that's what gives you confidence out there. You can just go out there and play and—I'm not saying he's doing that but to me if you have a good foundation, if you're having a bad day you can always fall back on that."

Until Gilbert can get his practice performance to translate to live games and can rebound from his mistakes in a constructive manner, it may be some time before he can live up to his 2014 Round 1 draft billing. Improvements are happening, but are they happening rapidly enough to get him into the starting lineup this year?