Catching up

Lots to catch up on. The anticlimactic roster trimdown to the not-so-final 53; what to expect in Kevin Stefanski's third season; continued success on defense; the further adventures of Baker Mayfield; and the Deshaun Watson outcome. 

Too much to pack into one humongous -- and probably boring -- piece.  So let's do this one step at a time to keep the urge to reach for the No-Doz to a minimum, starting with the most recent event. The not-very-dramatic countdown to 53 for the Browns.

As expected, absolutely no surprises. Guessing the 53 was relatively easy. A lot of really good players on this roster return. Bottom line: If drafted by General Manager Andrew Berry, you are pretty much guaranteed a spot on the main roster at the beginning of the regular season. 

Berry has selected 24 players the last three lotteries, 22 of whom appear on the current 53. That number would undoubtedly be all 24 had centers Nick Harris and rookie Dawson Deaton not suffered major knee injuries within days of each other in training camp.

Which means a bloated 41.5% of the roster has earned the Andrew Berry Seal of Approval. But of those 22, only eight (grudgingly) have become starters or vital contributors -- Greg Newsome II, Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, Grant Delpit, Jordan Elliott  and rookie Martin Emerson Jr. on defense and only Jedrick Wills Jr., Donovan Peoples-Jones (grudgingly) and rookie David Bell on offense.

And with the Browns not selecting in the opening round again until 2025 (thank you very much, Deshaun Watson), the aftereffects of the big trade for the quarterback will not be felt for at least a couple of years. And they won't be pleasant.

This roster will be malleable, of course, probably right up until the season opening game a week from Sunday on the road against the Carolina Panthers. There are numerous weak spots that, if not seriously addressed, will become obvious quickly enough.

Right up at the top on either side of the football is an almost embarrassing lack of talent in the wide receivers room, populated by Amari Cooper, who might receive triple coverage this season, three incredibly mediocre (and that's being charitable) talents and a rookie (David Bell) with a reputation of actually holding on to a thrown forward pass.

The same cannot be said for Peoples-Jones, who is beginning to look alarmingly like the underachieving player he was in college at Michigan; Anthony Schwartz, whose hands are not nearly as productive as his world-class speed legs and feet; and rookie Michael Woods II, whose talent is unknown because he was hurt during most of training camp.

This is the group Berry and Stefanski apparently like. What other logical conclusion can be reached by their continued presence. With other aging veterans still on the street leading up to training camp, the Browns chose to stick with this crew. 

Gotta feel for Jacoby Brissett who will keep the starting quarterback's seat warm for the first 11 games while Watson completes his suspension. He is, at best, a backup National Football League quarterback. Do not expect much from him.

All the glowing reports fans are fed from training camp about how well he is looking during practices are mere fodder. Now that the regular season is just around the corner, watch how opposing defenses squeeze the field on him, take away the short- and medium-range stuff and dare him to throw deep. Avert your eyes when that happens.

As for other aspects of the passing game, look for Stefanski to rely heavily on screen passes, outlet passes, slants and quick outs with running backs Kareem Hunt, D'Ernest Johnson (unless he's traded), Demetric Felton and rookie Jerome Ford heavily involved.

Because it's Brissett and not Watson in the first 11 games, Stefanski most likely will apply heavy doses of the ground game (maybe as many as half the playcalls) to win the possession battle with the talents of the peerless Nick Chubb, Hunt, Johnson and Ford.

And with just two tight ends in David Njoku and Harrison Bryant available, it will be interesting to see how the head coach assimilates them into the offense, which featured three tights more than any other NFL team last two seasons. He might start by targeting Bryant more than he has the last two seasons. 

But it's the grunts up front who will have to make it all happen. The success or failure of the running game depends heavily on their performance. Now factor in the quality of this season's offensive line falls well short of the last two seasons with weaknesses at center and left tackle, unless Wills decides to show why the Browns made him their No. 1 pick in 2020.

I see the club regretting -- without admitting it publicly -- releasing veteran center JC Tretter earlier this year. Berry and Stefanski boast about the versatility on the bench to step right in in the event center Ethan Pocic goes down. Wishful thinking.

Tretter was one of the top three centers in the league last season, and certainly the club's best offensive lineman, before being cashiered. He's still out there, too, after retiring. All it takes is a phone call.

Next: The defense and Baker.