BEREA, Ohio (92.3 The Fan) – In March the Browns shocked the NFL by landing their franchise quarterback with a blockbuster trade.
But Deshaun Watson, who is expected to be allowed to play football again in December, isn’t stopping them from stocking up on quarterbacks.
Claiming Kellen Mond from the Vikings and bringing back Josh Rosen to the practice squad gives them four guys who are allowed to play the first 11 games of the season.
“Just keeping as many good players as we can,” Browns assistant general manager and vice president of player personnel Glenn Cook said Thursday.
“We were fond of Kellen from afar throughout the draft process and to have an opportunity to get a good player in who we still see some development runway for, and work with him and see what he can do for us and how he develops. We like what Josh did in camp, so we're glad to have him back too.”
Jacoby Brissett of course will start in place of Watson starting next week in Carolina. Joshua Dobbs will be the backup, so read nothing into the addition of Mond and return of Rosen when it comes to the No. 2 job.
“Josh Dobbs is our No. 2,” Stefanski said.
Dobbs had an electrifying preseason that saw him complete 66% of his passes for 338 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Three of Dobbs’ six runs went for first downs and another a touchdown that saw him leap inside the pylon at the goal line.
“I think he’s very sneaky in terms of an athlete,” Cook said. “Because I wouldn’t say it’s like twitchy or super fast, but he runs away from people, he controls the pocket with his athleticism and then he’s been really productive and consistent as a passer. So he’s done well. We’re really happy with him.”
Rosen was waived during the roster reduction to 53 on Tuesday and he’ll get an opportunity to continue to learn Stefanski’s system.
“Josh gave us some good reps,” head coach Kevin Stefanski said. “There were some really good moments in those games and some really good moments out here on the [practice] field. He is still learning. This was new to him a few weeks back. He has come a long way because he is a very, very smart quarterback, but he is still growing.”
But do they really need all of these guys?
“Andrew [Berry] and organizationally, just felt like it was the right thing to do to have these players, take a look at everybody and constantly be in evaluation mode,” Stefanski said.
And that’s what it’s about. There’s nothing wrong with looking. Maybe they’ll get lucky and find a player they can develop for the field or to flip as an asset down the road.
Seasoned vet – Chase Winovich is back on the field just in time to prepare for the season opener after a hamstring injury suffered in Jacksonville sidelined him for the remainder of the preseason.
He’d been here before with training camp injuries which is why he wasn’t overly concerned about the bubble talk.
“They traded for me,” Winovich said. “I thought I had a good camp up until that point. I pulled my hamstring probably like the third play into the game, the preseason game, and played through it. It's like one of those things where it's like there's a plan, I've got a job to do and until they tell me otherwise, I'm going to keep doing it.”
In the spring the Browns swapped linebacker Mack Wilson to get him from New England.
“I think there's a huge trust factor, and it's a mutual respect,” Winovich said.
He hopes to stay in Cleveland for years to come. This year he’s the third defensive end behind starters Myles Garrett and Jadeveon Clowney.
“I sit next to Myles in the meeting room,” Winovich said. “He’s been a wealth of knowledge, whether it’s through actual communication, asking him specific questions on how he approaches it. Every single time I’ve asked him a question – and I ask a lot of questions, I consider myself a perspective collector – he has been just spot-on. It’s really changed the way I’ve looked at the game. It’s been really fun watching those two guys play. It’s really funny, I used to watch a lot of Jadeveon before I came here, just the way he played and the way he changed direction and set up his moves. So I’m constantly learning.”
Roshell back – Browns fans can take a chill pill.
Defensive end Isaac Roshell, waived Wednesday to make way for Mond, which sent fans into a tizzy on social media, was brought back to the practice squad Thursday.
Roll call – DE Myles Garrett, DT Perrion Winfrey, S Ronnie Harrison, DE Jadeveon Clowney, OL Chris Hubbard and CB AJ Green did not practice Thursday.
Garrett was excused for personal reasons and Winfrey was ill according to Stefanski.
Up next – Players off for a three-day weekend. They return for Week 1 on Monday.