BEREA, Ohio (92.3 The Fan) – Saturday’s preseason opener was pretty much a dud, and not just the final score either.
The second week of the preseason is now teed up with the Minnesota Vikings coming to town for a pair or practices and a game.
Here’s the top Brownie Bites from head coach Kevin Stefanski Sunday.
Watson plan – Deshaun Watson will not play next Saturday against the Vikings. That’s not news. Watson will get his work in against the Vikings during the joint practices Wednesday and Thursday. “He’ll get the vast majority of the reps, again, not playing in the game on Saturday night,” Stefanski said. “So, he’ll get his work done versus them in a controlled setting.” When asked if Watson had been cleared for full contact Stefanski responded, “yes.”
Joint practices – When the Vikings visit Berea this week, it will mark the fourth straight year under Stefanski they go against another team in practice. They’ve done a home and home with the Eagles as well as had the Giants come to town in previous years. “It’s an important part of training camp and I made mention of that last night with our players,” Stefanski said. “We’re very much in training camp, and this week is going to be hard. It’s going to be physical; it’s going to tax you mentally, physically, those type of things.” Stefanski explained why he’s such a big proponent of joint practices. “It’s going to allow us to go up against a different scheme, really, what they do offensively and defensively are different than what we do,” Stefanski said. “We’ll obviously also get work with their special teams. So going up against a different scheme for a couple of days where you can get really good, solid work in against a good football team, a well-coached football team, it’s very important to get this team ready for a week one.”
Welcome back – A day after losing backup center Luke Wypler to a broken ankle, the Browns brought back a familiar face in a trade with the Seahawks. Cleveland acquired center Nick Harris from Seattle along with a 2026 seventh round pick for a 2026 sixth round pick. Harris was selected by the Browns in the fifth round of the 2020 NFL Draft. As for Wypler, he will require surgery. “That’s the tough part of this game, I mean, injuries are no fun, and I feel terrible for anybody that has an injury like that,” Stefanski said. “Not to mention it’s just, it’s painful, but it’s painful for these guys too, to not be with their team for an extended period. So, I feel for Luke, I know he’ll bounce back quickly, but these injuries like that are just no fun for anybody involved.”
Three-peat – For the third straight year, the original running Brownie will be the logo used at midfield this season. It marks the third straight year the Browns original logo has won voting among fans held by the team. The new dog logo introduced last year finished second and the helmet received the fewest votes.
Injury report – S Ronnie Hickman (back), WR David Bell (quadriceps), S Vincent Gray (groin), LB Nathaniel Watson (quadriceps), C Luke Wypler (broken ankle-will require surgery)