Browns Cuts

[slowburn]

Lanning?

 

Graham says adios to his 15th NFL team. Some career this guy has had

[Zombo]

When Nelson was announced cut, I thought Gurley Man was making the team. Obviously they are bringing in a veteran instead.

 

Zombo

[Zombo]

Glad they cut Graham Cracker, we can find a better young leg than that Bungle who can't kick over 50 yarders.

 

Zombo

[tampadawgs]

Who will be our Kicker???

[cvcanedy]

Who will be our Kicker???

This is pretty strange this late in the game.

[slimdawg]

Havard "Kickalicious" Rugland! We know he can be extremely accurate, is a younger guy(will be 29 in Oct.) and from what I saw has a damn strong leg. With some good coaching IMO he could be an all pro kicker and if this mgmt. group is serious about building for the long term, why not? Could be our next Phil Dawson.

[D Bone]

Ah 6 days before the season starts, our team is "hitting the waiver wire hard" to add talent to the roster and it has no kicker...Super Bowl or bust!

[NaplesBrowns420]

Can Tebow kick?

[thenew23]

There are some decent players who got cut. Let's see if we add RB, OG, WR, CB, and definetly K...

[jrb12711]

Can Tebow kick?

 

Thanks for the laugh haha. I will be interested who they bring in at kicker, there's always veterans floating around so i'm sure we'll scoop one up.

[thenew23]

At RB, there are veterans such as Lance Ball, Joe McKnight, Ryan Torain, Jonathan Dwyer, OR young guys like Jonas Gray (ND), George Winn (CIN), Bobby Rainey. I still like bringing in McKnight and cutting an o-lineman.

 

At WR, there is Mike Thomas, Tandon Doss, Ben Obomanu, MoMass (j/k), Robert Meachem, Austin Collie, among others. I like grabbing Tandon Doss and cutting a LB.

 

At CB, there are some vets like Trufant and Carr, but not much else. Teams don't like cutting their corners.

 

At G, there is a lot of name, Fernando Velasco is the one that stands out, hopefully our scouts can find a guy they like and bring him in, unless they're satisfied with Cousins, Gilkey, Shaw at RG until Lauvao and Pinkston are healthy. I don't see this as a "must upgrade" position.

 

At K, Billy Cundiff, Dan Carpenter, rookie Brett Maher, Havard Rugland, and rookie Derek Dimke are some of the better names out there.

[TopDawg31]

Gotta believe there are plenty of undrafted free agent kickers out there that can develop into good kickers. Dawson started out this way. That kid out of Mentor is available, holds the Ohio HS state record for longest FG and holds the NCAA record for longest FG at Heinz field while kicking for PITT. Come on Banner show us your worth and uncover the next Dawson.

[Kosar_For_President]

Who the fuck is going to kick?

[slowburn]

errrr, guys we forgot to sign a kicker

 

who's available:

Neil Rackers
Billy Cundiff
Olindo Mare
Dave Rayner
Justin Medlock
David Buehler
Rhys Lloyd
Garrett Lindholm
Havard Rugland

[Shep]

We'll have a kicker bake off and take the best one. Some talk already about Dan Carpenter.

 

Browns have said they'll be making moves. You have to think we'll bring in a RB (Rainey?) and a WR (no clue). They'd love to get a corner in trade, I think. They may stand at guard with our two guys returning fairly shortly (Pinkston maybe by week three) and Cousins/Gilkey looking pretty good.

[Mark O]

Pro Football Focus said that Rainey was their highest rated available RB.

[JAFBF]

RB Brandon Jackson just cut

[Zombo]

RB Brandon Jackson just cut

 

Good.

 

He looked slow last year, I was surprised these guys brought him back.

 

Zombo

[slowburn]

Two rookies backing up TRich. Chud and Norv must feel good about the strength of our passing offense. Opportunity time for J Cams and co.

 

Don't forget about Ogbo..he's a bad man.

[JAFBF]

Browns cut TE Smelley, OL Shaw, and OL Hauptmann.

[miktoxic]

Two rookies backing up TRich. Chud and Norv must feel good about the strength of our passing offense. Opportunity time for J Cams and co.

 

Don't forget about Ogbo..he's a bad man.

 

oogie boogey IS a bad man.

 

hopefully turnerski can learn to utilize him correctly unlike past coaches with past players.

 

#1 example: how come we never saw cribbs throw the ball considering he was a QB 1/2 his football career?

[Zombo]

Browns cut TE Smelley, OL Shaw, and OL Hauptmann.

 

Wow ... I'm not caught up on all the threads and all the news yet, but as i am reading this we have two tight ends four wide receivers, no veteran backup RBs and no kicker ... going to be fun watching the holes fill ...

 

Zombo

[miktoxic]

well lanning punted and kicked in the last preseason game.

 

but there would no way the FO would let him be the solo 'boot' guy on the team.

 

if he went down then we'd have to bring mccoy back........as the ball holder.

 

hey oh!

[Zombo]

OK ..I am up to speed ..

 

CLEVELAND -- When the preseason began, the Browns were loaded at tailback with Trent Richardson, Montario Hardesty, Dion Lewis and Brandon Jackson.

Now, Richardson is the last man standing and the Browns are going back to the drawing board for a backup, claiming two young running backs on waivers Sunday, including one from the Ravens.

Jackson, a seventh-year pro who was re-signed to a one-year deal in the offseason, was cut by the Browns Sunday along with five other players in the second wave of final roster decisions.

When Hardesty (knee) and Lewis (broken leg) were placed on injured reserve for the season, Jackson blew a prime opportunity to seize the moment, rushing for only 43 yards on his 28 carries for a 1.5-yard average. Against the Bears, he managed a meager five yards on five carries.

The Browns still have Chris Ogbonnaya if Richardson needs a blow, but Ogbonnaya will focus more on fullback now with Owen Marecic gone.

The other players let go Sunday were tight ends Kellen Davis and Brad Smelley, second-year linebacker L.J. Fort, and offensive linemen Jarrod Shaw and Caylin Hauptmann. All were waived except for Davis and Jackson, who's contracts were terminated.

The Browns then looked to the waiver wire to restock some of those positions -- adding five undrafted rookies from the 2013 class and one from the 2012 class. They now have nine undrafted rookies from 2013 and four from 2012 on their 53-man roster.

The Browns were awarded the following six players on Sunday: tight ends MarQueis Gray from the 49ers and Keavon Milton from the Saints; running backs Dennis Johnson from the Texans and Bobby Rainey from the Ravens; center Patrick Lewis from the Packers and linebacker Brandon Magee from the Cowboys.

Absent from the list is a kicker, but the club will most likely have some in early this week for tryouts. Among those available are Dan Carpenter, Billy Cundiff and Havard "Kickalicious" Rugland of Norway.

"Again, our roster is fluid right now," coach Rob Chudzinski said in a release. "We still need to address our kicker position, so we’re not done. We’re a young and hungry team with some solid veteran leaders. I like the foundation we have in place as we enter the season. I’m excited to see what we can do.”

Davis (6-7, 265) was signed as a free agent from Chicago in the offseason, but failed to show much in preseason. The Browns now have only two veteran tight ends on the roster in Jordan Cameron and Gary Barnidge. Fort was an undrafted rookie out of Northern Iowa in 2012 who played in 15 games last season and started one, but the Browns were more intrigued by Magee.

Smelley, the Browns' seventh-round pick out of Alabama last season, had the versality to play tight end and fullback, but became expendable when the Browns spotted Gray and Milton on the waiver wire. According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, at least six teams put in claims on Gray.

Smelley became the fourth member of the 2012 draft class cut since Tuesday, including fourth-rounder James-Michael Johnson, fifth-rounder Ryan Miller, and seventh-rounder Trevin Wade.

A look at the newcomers:

* Rainey (5-8, 212), signed by the Ravens as an undrafted rookie last year out of Western Kentucky, spent the first five weeks on the Ravens’ practice squad before moving up to the active roster. He was inactive for three games and placed on injured reserve with a knee injury on Nov. 13. This preseason, he led the Ravens with 89 yards rushing on 23 carries with two touchdowns, while adding three receptions for 17 yards. The Ravens hoped to sneak Rainey through waivers and onto their practice squad.

* Johnson (5-7, 193) was signed by the Texans as an undrafted rookie out of Arkansas on May 10. In the preseason, he rushed 33 times for 129 yards (3.9 avg.) with one touchdown, adding five receptions for 31 yards (6.2 avg.). At Arkansas, he rushed for 2,036 yards on 345 carries (5.9 avg.) and scored 20 touchdowns (13 rushing, four receiving and three kickoff returns).

"I like the depth we've been able to add at running back," Chudzinski said. "Both Johnson and Rainey have been productive runners. They also give us some options as a kickoff returner. We'll look at that in the next few days."

* Gray (6-4, 250) was signed by the 49ers as an undrafted rookie out of Minnesota, where he started a combined 26 games at quarterback and receiver. He passed for 2,053 yards and 14 TDs, rushed for 1,731 yards and 12 TDs, and added 766 yards receiving with six TDs. Most NFL teams view him as a tight end, but he's versatile.

* Milton (6-4, 293) was originally signed by New Orleans on May 10 as an undrafted tight end out of Louisiana-Monroe. He appeared in all four of the Saints' preseason contests and recorded one reception for 10 yards. In college, he appeared in 45 games and totaled 220 receiving yards on 25 receptions with four touchdowns.

"Gray has experience as a quarterback and wide receiver," Chudzinski said, "so he’s a heck of an athlete. Milton gives us a guy with good blocking ability and hands."

* Lewis (6-1, 311) signed with the Packers as an undrafted free agent May 10 out of Texas A&M. He started at guard his first two seasons and was switched to center, where he earned All-Big 12 honorable-mention accolades as a junior and bolstered an Aggie offense that finished third nationally in both total offense and scoring in 2012.

"Lewis can play both guard and center, so I like the versatility there on the interior of our offensive line," Chudzinski said.

* Magee (5-11, 225) was signed by the Cowboys as an undrafted rookie out of Arizona State and recorded 16 tackles in two preseason games. But he suffered a concussion Aug. 19 and sat out the final two exhibition games. The Cowboys thought so much of him when they signed him that they gave him $70,000 guaranteed, rare for an undrafted rookie. In college, he appeared in 44 games and recorded 231 tackles. Also an outfielder, he helped the Sun Devils advance to the College World Series twice and was selected in the MLB draft three times.

"Magee is just a tough, old-school linebacker with good instincts," Chudzinski said. "I believe he can help us."

The new players will be on the field Monday when the Browns begin preparing for Sunday's opener against the Dolphins.

In other Browns news:

* Johnson, cut Saturday, was claimed by Kansas City.

* Offensive lineman Braxston Cave was picked up by New England.

* The Browns signed former Mount Union receiver Jasper Collins to their practice squad, according to his Twitter account.

http://www.cleveland.com/browns/index.ssf/2013/09/cleveland_browns_cut_brandon_j.html#incart_2box

[Zombo]

Another rundown:

 

As was made pretty clear yesterday, the Browns were not done shuffling their roster after the cut to get down to 53 players. The team kept a remarkable 12 offensive linemen and nokicker. Today, the Browns made a number of moves to reshape their roster and appear to have improved their situations at some key spots, including running back, tight end and inside linebacker.

The Browns claimed Bobby Rainey from the Baltimore Ravens and Dennis Johnson from the Houston Texans. For those who read yesterday’s article, these were the two backs mentioned that were possible targets for the Browns and they went ahead and grabbed both of them.

Rainey was stuck on the bottom of a loaded roster with the Ravens, but he comes in as a shorter back that gets everything out of what he has athletically. He is efficient as a runner, can catch the ball out of the backfield, and can return kicks. His overall athletic ability is average but his technique and grit allow him to be effective. Rainey can help this team as a running back, but the fact he has been a Raven for the last two years is not lost on the front office of the Browns. Not only do the Browns see the Ravens twice per year, but they see them week 2 on the road. The more a player can do to make a team, in this case, could also include information about an opponent.

Johnson was on a Texans roster that seemed to bring in every undrafted free agent running back body they could in addition to having Adrian Foster and Ben Tate. They were never going to be able to keep everyone and Johnson was one of the backs they let go. AtArkansas, Johnson was an intriguing all around talent who did a little of everything for the Razorbacks. Johnson has good size at 5’9” 213lbs, has power and quickness that he can use to get past defenders and is not afraid to run between the tackles. He is able to catch passes and also has experience returning kicks. He has to do a better job of holding onto the football, but Johnson is legitimately someone that could come in and be a nice surprise addition for the Browns.

With these two moves, the Browns let go of Brandon Jackson. The journeyman back just never found much success going into his seventh year of the NFL. The fact that Chris Ogbannaya, in addition to being able to function as a fullback, can also do everything that Jackson can as a half back certainly made that move easier. As disappointing as the losses ofDion Lewis and Montario Hardesty are, the Browns should legitimately be better at the position than they were going into the Indianapolis Colts game.

The Browns also decided to try to upgrade the inside linebacker position further after parting ways with James-Michael Johnson yesterday. In addition to Eric Martin who was brought in last week, the Browns claimed Brandon Magee from the Dallas Cowboys off of waivers. Magee was the running mate of fellow Corona, California native Vontaze Burfict at Arizona State when both had impressive years in 2010. In 2011, Magee missed the season with an injury and Burfict got fat and dive bombed the draft process. Magee rebounded in 2012 with his best year for the Sun Devils. It is nevertheless interesting that the Browns have decided to bring in a 6’ 230lb linebacker in place of L.J. Fort, who was released. Fort is another player who had some average physical ability but left everything he had out on the field. Ray Hortonreally seems to like these smaller linebackers on the inside of his scheme. They really do not have a prototype thumper in the middle of that defense with guys like Craig Robertson, Tank Carder and now Magee. They have a bunch of smaller guys who just fight to get to the football. The defensive line has to be great and really take up blocks for these guys to be effective. Magee should also be a fixture on special teams for the Browns.

The Browns also attempted to improve their situation at tight end by picking up MarQueis Gray and Keavon Milton . Gray was a quarterback at Minnesota before the 49ers brought him in for a try out as a tight end. He was ultimately cut but one theory floating around was the idea that the 49ers actually tried to avoid getting him the ball in their last preseason game to try to sneak him onto the practice squad. Whether there is any truth there or not, the Browns signed him to the active roster. Milton is a 6’4” 293lb tight end. The Louisiana-Monroe Warhawk is a blocking tight end the size of a tackle. He did catch 22 passes in his previous 21 games but he was brought in to be a hammer in the running game.

Both of these players are still young and especially in the case of Gray, quite raw, but the Browns have three coaches on staff who have a tremendous reputation with the tight end position in Jon Embree, Norv Turner and Rob Chudzinski, so this could be something to keep an eye on going forward. Of the two, Milton looks more likely to get on the field quicker in a blocking capacity while Gray is more of a special teams component and development player behind Jordan Cameron and Gary Barnidge.

Kellen Davis was released to make room on the roster and the only surprise with Davis was that it took as long as it did. Davis really struggled in preseason as a blocker and his entire career has been questionable when it comes to his hands. They also released Brad Smelleywho now becomes the fifth member of the draft from last year that is no longer on the active roster. Smelley was Richardson’s backfield mate at Alabama and gave the Browns someone who could conceivably play at fullback and tight end. He spent all of last season on the practice squad and it could be a similar deal this year.

The Browns did add another offensive lineman by claiming Patrick Lewis off of waivers from the Green Bay Packers. Lewis played center at Texas A&M, but was used as a guard for the Packers, so conceivably he can help at a couple spots. Lewis has size but other than the fact he has had Johnny Manziel’s hands under his butt, it remains to be seen what the Browns like about him.

Braxton Cave, who was trying out with the Browns out of Notre Dame was picked up by theNew England Patriots. This might highlight just how thin the offensive line is around the NFL, especially when it comes to depth. The Browns released two offensive linemen today. They let go of undrafted free agent Caylin Hauptmann and Jarrod Shaw, but still have 11 offensive line on the roster at the moment.

Obviously, the Browns are not done making moves as they still do not have a kicker. The fact is the kicker is not a huge concern in the moment. The position players were of much larger concern. The Browns are virtually the only team not already settled at the kicker spot, so their options are not going anywhere right now. They will look to see if other options are better butShayne Graham could end up back on this roster in the end. It might not seem smart to let him go right now if they are just going to bring them back, but it does give the Browns an extra roster spot for flexibility and ability to take on players or sit on players hoping to get a deal. The Browns put Brandon Bogotay on injured reserve, so he will be stashed for a year and have a chance to win the job next season.

The Browns might also be looking for another punter as Spencer Lanning was anything but consistent in preseason. Zoltan Mesko might be an option in that respect. He went unclaimed on waivers, but that is because of his contract situation. He would have cost more than anyone wanted to pay him if they grabbed him off of waivers. Once he clears, the team that takes him can negotiate the contact they want to pay, which is when Mesko would likely be signed.

The full practice squad still has not been released to this point, but reports have Jamoris Slaughter, the team’s sixth round pick and Jasper Collins, the wide receiver out of Mount Union, both on it. Slaughter just was not ready to contribute with the injury setbacks he dealt with coming into this season but could still be a productive member of this team if he can get back to 100% and work to get ready for next year. Collins is an average player in terms of tools, but really understands the position and how to get open to make plays, not unlike Josh Cooper, though Collins appears to have slightly more upside. This list will be updated as the rest of the practice squad becomes available.

The 53 man roster is getting closer to getting to as final a product as a 53 man squad ever is. While they still have roster spots to sort out, especially when it comes to their special teams, the Browns appear to have gotten better today. The question is how much better and where are the issues they still need to address. If this waiver wire was an indication of anything, it was that the Browns were anything but satisfied with their situations at tight end, running back, and inside linebacker. Perhaps a few of these additions will work out for this year, but these could be issues that are concerns all year long in addition to the secondary.

[Zombo]

Here's how Ourlads has our current depth chart:

 

We know it's not right because they still have hazel listed as a DE, among other things, but it at least gives you a chance to place all of the names that are on the roster.

 

At least one more guy is getting cut ... because we don't have a kicker.

 

LWR 80 Benjamin, Travis 12/4 88 Cooper, Josh CF12 RWR 18 Little, Greg 11/2 15 Bess, Davone T/Mia LT 73 Thomas, Joe 07/1 79 BUTLER, RASHAD U/Hou 64 Wallace, Martin CF13 LG 77 Greco, John T/SL 62 Pinkston, Jason 11/5 65 Gilkey, Garrett 13/7 C 55 Mack, Alex 09/1 00 Lewis, Patrick W/GB RG 66 Lauvao, Shawn 10/3 RT 72 Schwartz, Mitchell 12/2 75 Cousins, Oniel W/Bal TE 84 Cameron, Jordan 11/4 82 Barnidge, Gary U/Car 00 Gray, MarQueis W/SF 00 Milton, Keavon W/NO QB 3 Weeden, Brandon 12/1 17 CAMPBELL, JASON U/Chi 6 Hoyer, Brian CC/Arz FB 25 Ogbonnaya, Chris P/Hou RB 33 Richardson, Trent 12/1 00 Johnson, Dennis W/Hou 00 Rainey, Bobby W/Bal Defense LDE 71 Rubin, Ahtyba 08/6 93 Hughes, John 12/3 96 Hazel, Paul W/JAX NT 98 Taylor, Phil 11/1 67 Kitchen, Ishmaa'ily W/Bal RDE 92 Bryant, Desmond U/Oak 90 Winn, Billy 12/6 95 Bryant, Armonty 13/7 LOLB 99 Kruger, Paul U/Bal 54 Groves, Quentin U/Arz LILB 53 Robertson, Craig CF11 59 Carder, Tank W/Buf RILB 52 Jackson, D'Qwell 06/2 00 Magee, Brandon W/Dal 56 Martin, Eric W/NO ROLB 97 Sheard, Jabaal 11/2 51 Mingo, Barkevious 13/1 LCB 23 Haden, Joe 10/1 29 McFadden, Leon 13/3 SS 43 Ward, TJ 10/2 24 Bademosi, Johnson CF12 37 Aubrey, Josh CF13 FS 39 Gipson, Tashaun CF12 RCB 22 Skrine, Buster 11/5 21 Owens, Chris U/Atl Special Teams P 5 Lanning, Spencer W/Jax PK H 5 Lanning, Spencer W/Jax LS 57 Yount, Christian SF11 90 Winn, Billy 12/6 PR 80 Benjamin, Travis 12/4 15 Bess, Davone T/Mia 88 Cooper, Josh CF12 KR 24 Bademosi, Johnson CF12 80 Benjamin, Travis 12/4 22 Skrine, Buster 11/5 KR Reserves RES 28 Lewis, Dion IR 70 Faulk, Chris NFI 20 Hardesty, Montario IR 8 Bogotay, Brandon IR 12 Gordon, Josh SUS/2

 

http://www.ourlads.com/nfldepthcharts/depthchart/CLE