Allgemeines » 8 notes on the Browns’ initial 53-man roster

The Cleveland Browns named their initial 53-man roster on Saturday. Before anticipated waiver claims come in on Sunday Youth David Njoku Jersey , let’s analyze the team’s initial 53-man roster with 8 quick hitter thoughts.Here are 8 quick hitters about the initial roster:1. Comparing to Final ProjectionI correctly predicted 45/53 (84.9%) of the roster spots in my final roster projection, which is one pick worse than my final projection from a year ago. Our of curiosity, I went back to see how well I did in my pre-training camp roster projection:1st projection: 43/53 (81.1%) - link2nd projection: 45/53 (84.9%) - link2. Who I Missed Out OnThe players I thought were going to make the roster, but did not, were FB Dan Vitale, WR Jeff Janis, OT Shon Coleman, OL Spencer Drango, DL Caleb Brantley, DE Nate Orchard, LB Justin Currie, and CB Mike Jordan.There were no jaw-dropping cuts. While I am overall surprised at the demise of Coleman, because of the demotion at the beginning of camp, I had speculated for weeks that the club was probably looking to trade him. Orchard is the longest-tenured player to be cut, but he was only making bigger plays against second- and third-stringers. Removing Drango after all the reps he took is a sign of how unsatisfied the team was with their offensive line depth. Vitale not making it will be alleviated by Charles, another blocker, being on the roster. He has some H-Back experience from his Bengals days.Not including trades, the players I failed to predict making the roster WR Derrick Willies, TE Orson Charles, OL Earl Watford, OL Desmond Harrison, LB Jermaine Grace, CB Denzel Rice, and CB Jeremiah McKinnon.3. Biggest SurpriseI did not expect the team to waive Caleb Brantley. When you think back to the team’s defensive tackle rotation a year ago, it was five-strong with Danny Shelton, Trevon Coley, Larry Ogunjobi, Jamie Meder, and Brantley. The team traded Shelton this offseason to the Patriots, in part because they loved the young depth they had.That depth became a concern in the preseason due to injuries to Coley and Brantley http://www.thebrownsfootballauthentic.com/jamie-collins-jersey-authentic , along with some lackadaisical play. Brantley had a reputation in college of taking plays off, which is why he fell to the 6th round to begin with. Per Lane Adkins of The OBR, that did him in with GM John Dorsey:4. Waiver WireWe’ll be coming up with a separate article tonight on possible waiver wire targets who could interest Cleveland, but this serves as a reminder that now the real fun starts for our front office. For the second year in a row, the payoff of having the worst record is that the team now get first dibs on all of the younger players who were cut and subject to waivers.If there were any young players who had a solid preseason, Cleveland can have those players for free. It’s a luxury that the front office will absolutely take advantage of.Despite the initial 53-man roster being set, I could still easily see about four waiver claims. That means the team would need to cut four players who made the initial roster. The most likely cuts could be WR Derrick Willies, OL Earl Watford, LB Jermaine Grace, and either CB Denzel Rice or CB Jeremiah McKinnon.The biggest positions of need via the waiver wire should be on the offensive line and at linebacker...but don’t be surprised if they explore any and all positions, due to the large talent pool they will be able to hand pick from.5. Practice Squad PossibilitiesOf the players cut so far, RB Matthew Dayes, TE Devon Cajuste, DL Daniel Ekuale, LB B.J. Bello, and S Simeon Thomas are the five players I’d most like to see on the practice squad. We know S Tigie Sankoh will be on there as the special NFL Europe exemption. And then if Willies, Grace, Rice, or McKinnon are waived in favor of new additions, they can go on there too.6. Who is the New Guy?A little bit lost in the shuffle is the fact that the Browns made a trade at the cutdown deadline, acquiring DL Devaroe Lawrence from the New Orleans Saints in exchange for a 7th round pick in 2019. Lawrence (6-2, 295 lbs) played college football at Auburn, but tore his ACL in December 2016. Despite the injury, the New Orleans Saints signed him as an undrafted free agent. Saints coach Sean Payton had high praise for him:Lawrence was ready to return to action in 2018, and he delivered this preseason, logging 10 tackles, 2.5 sacks, 3 tackles for a loss, 4 quarterback hits, and 1 pass defended. In terms of motivation and hunger http://www.thebrownsfootballauthentic.com/seth-devalve-jersey-authentic , one could argue that he has the drive the team wished that Caleb Brantley had — and Lawrence is likely taking his roster spot.7. Hard Knocks ImpactThe “bubble” players who were featured heavily on this year’s Hard Knocks included QB Brogan Roback, TE Devon Cajuste, DE Nate Orchard, and DE Carl Nassib. Of the four, only Nassib survived the cut, and you imagine those storylines will play out in the final episode this Tuesday at 10 PM ET.8. Josh Gordon is Still ThereForgive me, but I have to rub my eyes about 20 times just to be sure: WR Josh Gordon is actually on the 53-man roster to begin a season. Not a suspension or non-football injury list. He is on the roster. We really are going to get to see Tyrod Taylor throwing to he and WR Jarvis Landry in Week 1 against the Steelers, aren’t we? With Josh Gordon long gone after he and his baggage were jettisoned to the Patriots, the Browns need another dynamic playmaker to stretch the field.Antonio Callaway had better be ready."He ain't got no choice," Browns receiver Jarvis Landry said with a smile.Perhaps Cleveland's fastest player, Callaway is literally learning on the fly. The speedy 21-year-old, who had a checkered college career at Florida and would have been a first-round pick if not for non-football issues, is expected to have an expanded role going forward for the Browns (0-1-1).This is Callaway's latest chance, and he's planning to make the most it."It's the National Football League," he said following a walk-through as the Browns prepared for Thursday night's game against the New York Jets. "So I've got to step up."Callaway did just that last Sunday in New Orleans while filling in for Gordon, who was left home after he betrayed Cleveland's trust for the last time. Callaway made three catches for 81 yards and scored his first pro touchdown when he hauled in Tyrod Taylor's soaring 47-yard pass with 1:16 remaining.On fourth-and-5, Browns offensive coordinator Todd Haley and Taylor rolled the dice with the daring, deep pass that looked for a moment to be overthrown."I thought he was throwing it to me and I was like, 'Damn, this is too far,'" said Landry, who was running a pattern down the middle of the field to Callaway's left. "And then I peeked outside and I saw Callaway. And then I saw him put his head down and dig again, and he made the catch. That was definitely another gear."Browns coach Hue Jackson said he's watched at least five replays of Callaway's sprint and fingertip grab."When he threw it, I thought, 'Oh my,'" Jackson said. "I did not think we could get to it to be honest with you. All of a sudden, I see this guy go vroom and he runs right under the ball. What a play."Callaway may have to make more big plays if the Browns intend to end their 19-game winless streak dating to 2016. He was always in the team's plans for his first season, but Gordon's departure has accelerated everything for a player who at times has run too fast off the field.While at Florida, Callaway struggled to stay out of trouble. He was investigated on a sexual assault charge that was later dropped, got cited for misdemeanor possession of marijuana charge and then was dropped from the Gators team for his involvement in a credit card scheme.Callaway failed a drug test when he provided a diluted sample at the NFL Combine in February Authentic Chris Hubbard Jersey , further damaging his chances to be drafted early.Still, the Browns felt comfortable enough to select him with the No. 105 overall pick, and they had no reason to second-guess their decision until Callaway was ticketed for driving on a suspended license and police found a small amount of marijuana and gun parts in his car during a traffic stop in August.But Callaway has been on the straight and narrow since, and Jackson has been pleased with his progress."He's making strides," Jackson said. "We were not trying got push him too fast, not give him too much, too fast. Now, he has to take it all. It's time. I think that he will do well. He has always competed hard, and he always works at it. It is another step for him. This Thursday night will be good for him."So was the TD catch on a perfectly thrown ball by Taylor, a play that became a footnote in another painful loss for the Browns.Landry, though, said it can change Callaway."It does everything," he said. "It does a lot, obviously, for the guys around him, but it does a lot for the coaches and it does a lot for 5 (Taylor). And that's something as an offense we need, so it's awesome."NOTES: Starting DE Emmanuel Ogbah will miss his second game Thursday with a sprained left ankle. ... RB Duke Johnson has just 11 touches in two games, and Jackson said that's not nearly enough for one of the team's best offensive players. "Duke is a tremendous player," Jackson said. "We have got to put him in position to make an impact, because he can. We will continue to look at different ways of getting him involved, but we will. We will get Duke going." ... New rookie K Greg Joseph was still meeting teammates after being signed Monday following a tryout. The Browns cut Zane Gonzalez after he missed four kicks in Sunday's loss. If he stays around, Joseph, who played at Florida Atlantic, could be kicking in frigid conditions in Cleveland. He faced some inclement weather in college at Western Kentucky and Middle Tennessee. "I don't know the temperature, but there wasn't any palm trees and the sun wasn't shining," he said.