Odell Beckham Jr. was nowhere to be seen because of an illness.
“He is not feeling good,” Browns head coach Freddie Kitchens said. “That is probably more of a hour-by-hour thing. I know he was not feeling really good this morning, which was evident.”
The entire starting defensive line was out with injuries.
Myles Garrett, who has been as explosive as ever during camp, along with Larry Ogunjobi joined the walking wounded. Garrett has a knee injury and Ogunjobi a groin injury. Sheldon Richardson has been down with an abdominal injury and Olivier Vernon a hamstring.
The offense took advantage with the twos, which featured Anthony Zettel and Chris Smith at defensive end and tackles Daniel Ekuale and Devaroe Lawrence, on the field.
“I definitely noticed it,” running back Nick Chubb said. “I did not say anything. We have to do what we have to do, and we all noticed that they were not in there.”
Garrett has noticed the attention the offense has been getting, which is fine with him.
“We’re underrated right now,” Garrett said Saturday night. “Not many people are looking at us as a defense…. Our defense, it’s going to creep up on people and they’re going to start to understand, but we have to put the work in.”
Kitchens made it clear that the four were not given a day off, they worked on the side with trainers.
“We are not giving people days off,” Kitchens said. “If they are over there, they are over there for a reason.”
Baker Mayfield unloaded a 50-yard bomb down the field and Willies reached out with his right hand as he was falling in the end zone to make the catch with TJ Carrie on him like glue. Willies got up and kicked the ball into the air in celebration.
Willies, who had been getting reps with the ones during camp, is fighting for one of the final spots at the position with Jaelen Strong, Damion Ratley and Ishmael Hyman.
“Derrick is going to continue to learn and continue to move forward,” Kitchens said. “I have total confidence in him. I was glad to see him make a tough catch at the end of practice.”
Willies dropped a couple of catches earlier in practice but the one he made near the end of it was unforgettable.
“We just brought him in to check him out and make sure he was okay,” Kitchens said. “I have not got the full lowdown on it yet – how severe, how significant. Jarvis is a tough guy. He was out there practicing with it, and he is a tough guy. We will monitor him accordingly and give him reps.”
“It is still a competition,” Kitchens said. “I am looking for somebody to step up. I told all three of them that I’m looking for somebody to step up. We are almost two weeks in now. Somebody needs to start separating themselves.”
So, is Kush the front runner?
“We will see if he can string some days together,” Kitchens said.
Austin Corbett, selected 33rd overall in the 2018 NFL Draft, failed to win a starting job at left tackle last year and it doesn’t appear he’s on his way to winning the right guard job in his sophomore season. He’s spent a lot of time as the backup center, and he did so again Monday.
Kyle Kalis was the backup right guard again.
“It’s going to be scary,” Chubb said. “Kareem does a lot of great things. I remember watching him in college and last year from afar. He’s a big playmaker, makes special plays, he’s very athletic and does a lot of great things, catching the ball, too. It’s going to be fun to play with him.”
While questions remain about Hunt, who will serve an eight-game suspension at the outset of the season, Chubb has forged a close relationship with the troubled back.
“Kareem is great,” Chubb said. “He’s become one of my closest friends on the team. We’re always together because we’re running backs, too. He’s a cool guy, I’ve enjoyed getting to know him.”
Colin Cowherd, as the Indians’ tweet foretold, ripped the Browns quarterback on his radio show while his head coach laughed about it when asked on Monday.
“How am I supposed to answer this one? Yes, I did,” Kitchens said with a chuckle. “It was impressive. It was very impressive.”
Kitchens joked that he doesn’t drink beer anymore before recanting. One thing he’s never done, bitten into the can the way Mayfield did.
“I would be worried about my teeth,” Kitchens said.