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Training camp thoughts, Part Deux . . .

It’s the least watched aspect of a football team and thus its importance is easily overlooked. It’s special teams, most notably the kicking game.

Right now, the Browns have two placekickers in camp and both are underwhelming the coaching staff in charge.

Too early to panic? OK, maybe not panic, but be concerned? Certainly not with four exhibitions and numerous practice before the regular seasons commences. But it’s getting dicey early.

Greg Joseph and Austin Seibert have not done anything thus far that engender the notion that would make one think yeah, this contest is over. Time to move on.

Joseph, who stepped into the role early last season when Zane Gonzalez proved beyond any shadow of doubt he did not belong in the National Football League and performed reasonably well, has a slight lead.

Seibert, the Browns’ fifth-round draft choice earlier this year, has been inconsistent. He is missing field goals from makeable distances. But he’s the kicker the brass wants to win this battle. Why else did they draft him? To unseat Joseph is the correct answer.

Most fans and a majority of the media are concentrating on the two sides of the football that matter most. Relegating the kicking game (and the special teams overall) is a mistake.

The team that has the best placekicker, the guy you can count on time and again in pressure situations, often determines the outcomes of close games. As much as offense and defense dictate the outcome of games, so do field goals in many cases.

It is incumbent Cleveland General Manager John Dorsey and his front office make certain this football team enters the 2019 season with a kicker in place who can be depended on to properly handle clutch situations.

There is no certainty now that man is on the current roster. There are only 16 games on a regular-season schedule. The importance of each each one stands alone on a weekly basis. To lose one because of a missed field goal or extra point magnifies the importance of the other 15.

If there is no movement between Joseph and Seibert, Dorsey needs to prod them. He needs to motivate them because they don’t seem to be motivating each other. He needs to bring in a third kicker, one who knows how to handle pressure; someone who has been down that road before.

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Baker Mayfield is grown up in so many ways. The second-year quarterback has proven in a short period of time that he can handle just about anything. His swagger is infectious and contagious. He owns something the Browns have been looking for in their quarterback for two decades: The It Factor.

He is unusually mature for a 24-year who has unquestionably become the face of this franchise. He has been a dream from a public relations standpoint. Mention Baker Mayfield’s name and the most immediate thought is the Cleveland Browns.

No one else on this roster can boast that. Wherever he goes, whatever he does reflects on the Browns, mostly in a positive manner. But he stumbled a bit Saturday night.

While sitting in a loge (wearing a Francisco Lindor jersey) with his new bride at the Indians-Los Angeles Angels game after playing in the annual Orange-Brown scrimmage downtown earlier that day, someone tossed him a can of beer.

He caught it and shotgunned it, swigging roughly a third of the can. The act, which coincidentally sparked a five-run Tribe rally, was captured on the giant video board. The fans loved it. The video went viral on the Internet.  It was done ostensibly in good fun. An impulsive moment perhaps?

But I wonder how it went down with those in the Ivory Tower? It looked crude. It was a frat boy moment, Looks as though Mayfield hasn’t totally grown up. The face of the franchise acting like a college kid. Guess he still has a little more growing up in him.

It almost certainly will provide fodder for his harshest and most relentless critics. Judging from his past reaction to such criticism, he won’t care. But at the very least, he should see his actions on and off the field matter now that he has become the franchise’s face and take greater responsibility to live up to that.

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There are 11 wide receivers in camp. At least six will make the final 53-man roster. Chiseled are Jarvis Landry, Odell Beckham Jr., Antonio Callaway and Rashard Higgins.

Derrick Willies, who impressed last season before an injury cut that season short, has been impressive in camp and is close to being a lock as one can get without being officially named. Mayfield seems to love his angular 6-4 frame, connecting with several high arching throws to take advantage of his height.

Free agent Jaelen Strong and 2018 draft pick Damion Ratley are battling for the sixth spot with Strong taking the lead in Saturday’s scrimmage with an impressive performance.

The former Arizona State standout, who missed the 2018 season with a torn ACL, was picked up as a free agent six months ago. He has the kind of size at 6-2, 220 pounds that coach Freddie Kitchens likes.

Strong caught 157 passes in two seasons at ASU for nearly 2,300 yards and 17 touchdowns. With Houston and Jacksonville in the NFL, he caught only 31 passes for 330 yards in limited action for three seasons.

Ratley, who played for pass-averse Texas A&M in college, saw limited action last season, mostly after Mayfield became the starting quarterback. His six-reception, 82-yard effort in the week six loss to the Los Angeles Chargers was the highlight of his 13-catch, 144-yard season.

Finally . . . Still no decision on who has won the right guard battle on offense. Austin Corbett, the betting favorite, played center with the second unit in Saturday’s scrimmage. . . . Mack Wilson continues to impress at middle linebacker, batting down one pass and picking off another on a deflection. Worthy of keeping an eye on. . . .  Pharaoh Brown, a Brush High School alum, scored twice in the scrimmage, making a statement with regard to who wins a roster spot at tight end behind David Njoku and Demetrius Harris. Unless the Browns keep four tight ends, Seth DeValve is in jeopardy. At 6-6, 260, he has a distinct size advantage over the 6-3, 245-pound DeValve. . . . Duke Johnson Jr.’s hamstring woes have tethered him to the sidelines as a spectator. Makes you wonder whether he really has a hammy problem or is making a statement that he’s not exactly thrilled to still be with the team. . . . Defensive end Chad Thomas remains sidelined with an “illness.” Your guess is as good as mine. . . . The 37,000-plus crowd for the scrimmage shows just how starved this fan base is for a winner.