I was able to attend the teams first padded practice on Saturday. Here's my takeaway from it.
First of I was surprised at how many knowledgable fans that were sitting there. It seemed like everyone was there to scout the team. People knew all the players names and nobody really said outlandish shit which was nice. The team has also done an amazing job making the camp fan friendly. The new seating is awesome and they have all kinds of fan activities.
Anyway the thing you notice most going to see the Browns practice now is that the culture has changed. Hue Jackson has really changed the culture and you can see it in so many areas. The team is very very organized at practice. The players are always running to their next drill. Everything from the sidelines was smooth. It was like watching the best High School team in your area practice. It was high octane but controlled.
On to the players
Kessler has absolutely no zip on his throws. I'm disappointed because after hearing about how much he improved it was evident that he hasn't improved enough. He had way too many throws that just hung in the air or didn't have enough force behind them. On most of them you could hear the fans sort of groan because we could see how those throws would not fly in a game. I've thought about this for a minute but after his concussions last year and his physical limitations I think the writing is on the wall for Kessler. I don't see a valuable starter i this league when I see him.
Brock........This guy has the worse throwing angles I've ever seen live. His balls have the worse trajectory. You can see after the ball leaves his hand how the nose of the football is angling down towards the ground. I don't know if this has more to do with his height or his mechanics but it's horrible. He has no touch on throws under 10 yards. He throws a hard ball almost Weddenesque but he has no control over it. I don't think he's going to win the job. e were waiting for hm to have a few nice throws but it just wasn't there.
Kizer
lol I did not want to do this. I resisted every temptation. When he came out to take his reps there was applause that broke out in the stands
Not surprised because Browns Fans but man let me tell you....It was clear and I'm not an expert analyst or a scout but there's no way that you could've watched that practice and not come away thinking that this guy is clearly the best QB on the roster
He looked like a veteran more times than a rookie. His arm is special. He was making throws that Kessler and Brock simply can't make lolololol and it was obvious to everyone there. I'll just say this. barring injury I will be absolutely stunned if Kizer isn't the starter week 1. Right now it looks like the only thing that's working against him is time. Kessler and Brock still have time to show that they can be the starter but they have some work to do. If the season started next week I'm confident that Kizer would be the starter.
Elsewhere
Crow looks like a RB playing for a contract. A lot of pop
Duke Johnson was more involved in the pass game then the run game
Dayse looked really really good. he had the three best runs of the day and he lays the wood.
Njoku is a physical freak that is a matchup nightmare. He was lining up everywhere and he moves so fluid. He was lethal after the catch.
DaValve was really nice. They use him a lot. They looked like Gronk and Aaron Hernandez from a few years ago. They were both a handful.
Cory Coleman was attacking the ball. That was good to see. He looks more comfortable and you can tell he learned a lot.
Britt looks like he could be a team captain. He made some plays but he looked like a guy that has the respect of the players.
Nassib is a tallllll drink of water. Kessler did not throw a pass on his side of the line. Ogbah batted two of Kessler's passes as well.
Garrett didn't have any moments but the team was working him along like they said they would after his injury.
Larry Ogunjobi was in the backfield a lot. He had like three TFL and would've had two sacks.
Jamie Collins lined up at at least 5 different positions. He's such a good player to watch
Kindred might be the hardest hitter o the team. He knocked three balls loose on hits.
Peppers was really smooth on PR's. He lined up mostly at safety. Alford dropped 5 balls on PR's.
There was a pretty normal training camp fight. Nothing crazy but Danny Shelton was right in the middle of it.