CLEVELAND, Ohio (92.3 The Fan) – The odds of JC Tretter starting the season opener in Baltimore this Sunday increased significantly on Monday.
Tretter, who underwent knee surgery on August 13, returned to practice for the first time since undergoing the procedure.
“It was good to have JC back out there,” head coach Kevin Stefanski said during his daily Zoom video conference with reporters. “Not going to get into the extent to which he was back out there, we’ll deal with that on Wednesday. But good to have him out there in his pads.”
Tretter was the only injured player to return according to Stefanski.
Tretter has not missed a game in three years with the Browns and has played through multiple injuries including a high ankle sprain.
The Browns open the season by playing two games in five days – in Baltimore Sunday then home to host the Bengals Sept. 17.
Rookie center Nick Harris, selected in the fifth round of the draft this year, had been filling in with the first team offense in Tretter’s place during training camp.
“Obviously JC’s a veteran, he's seen a lot of football. I think there's value in that,” Stefanski said. “He's a leader of the football team, so really good to have him out there today.”
Storms forced the Browns to work inside Monday meaning under NFL-NFLPA COVID-19 protocols, reporters were not permitted inside the facility to observe.
Glad to be gone – Newly acquired safety Ronnie Harrison is glad to be out of Jacksonville and in Cleveland.
“They have been letting everybody go. Let’s just be blunt,” Harrison, who was acquired last Thursday for a 2021 fifth-round pick, said Monday.
Harrison took to twitter Sunday to express his excitement to join the Browns.
Harrison’s tweet Sunday ruffled feathers among Jaguars fans, but he said he meant no disrespect toward his former team.
“Really was just saying just relieved to be out of Jacksonville and just happy to be on a new team,” Harrison said. “This is a new team. I do not think a lot of people really understand that. With the coaches and stuff all the way down, this is a new team. The players have been here, but this a new team.
“We all want to win. The playoffs is the goal. Coming in and working hard every day is the goal. I was not throwing shots at the Jaguars or anything like that. Just happy to be out of Jacksonville. Happy to be here. New team. New goal. Ready to rock.”
it is unclear how much of a role Harrison will get to play against the Ravens but the coaching staff is working overtime to get him up to speed.
“He is smart. They are spending a lot of time together,” Stefanski said. “He is picking it up. He looked good out there today to me. We will determine over the next few days what that looks like this week.”
Getting’ ready for the Ravens – Stefanski’s debut as head coach won’t be easy.
The defending division champs, who went 14-2 during the regular season a year ago, await in Baltimore.
“Really good football team. Very well coached,” Stefanski said. “Balanced on offense, defense and special teams. It will be quite a challenge.”
Stefanski is tasked with simulating reigning league MVP in quarterback Lamar Jackson, who threw for 3,127 yards with 36 touchdowns and a rating of 113.3 in 2019, during practice this week. He also ran for 1,206 yards and seven touchdowns.
“It is very hard. He is the MVP of the league, a special talent,” Stefanski said. “I think our coaches have some ideas in how to try to simulate that speed, that quickness and that ability. It is something that we have been talking about for a long time, and we are now starting the preparations for Baltimore so that is something that we are introducing to the players really as we speak.”
Cap room – The Browns enter Week 1 with the most salary cap space according to the league report which shows Cleveland $34.74 million under the cap.
New England has the second-most room with $32.2 million available. The Jets and Jaguars are the only other two teams with at least $30 million in space.
Injury report – Greedy Williams (shoulder), Kevin Johnson (lacerated liver) and M.J. Stewart Jr. (hamstring), linebacker B.J. Goodson (personal) did not practice according to Stefanski.