Ball Played: Bauer and bats sour for Indians
July 24, 2015Indians to unveil Larry Doby statue amidst weekend festivities
July 24, 2015Over the last few weeks, I have examined the Cleveland Browns talented defense, position by position. On Tuesday I wrapped up the defense by looking at the defensive line. We will now shift over to the offensive side of the ball. I will first begin with the tight end and fullbacks on the roster. This group will be a position the team will need to improve and develop over the season, especially after losing Pro Bowl tight end Jordan Cameron. So, let’s take a look at the tight end/fullback group of the Cleveland Browns.
2015 Browns Position Previews: Safeties | Cornerbacks | Inside Linebackers | Outside Linebackers | Defensive Line | Tight Ends/Fullbacks
Tight Ends/Fullbacks
Additions
Rob Housler (Free Agency, Arizona Cardinals)
Malcolm Johnson (Draft, Sixth round from Mississippi State)
Randall Telfer (Draft, Sixth round from USC)
E.J. Bibbs (UDFA, Iowa State)
Kevin Haplea (UDFA, Florida State)
Subtractions
Jordan Cameron (Free Agency, Miami Dolphins)
The Starters: TE Rob Housler
The Browns will be looking to insert some new faces to hopefully rejuvenate the tight end position from last season’s underwhelming year. With the loss of Jordan Cameron to free agency, the Browns will need one of their many tight ends to step up and be the starting tight end to replace Cameron. Rob Housler should be the starting tight end, replacing former Pro Bowl tight end Cameron. Last season, Pro Football Focus gave Rob Housler a minus-8.1.
Rob Housler was signed by the Browns in free agency this offseason, after his playing first four seasons in Arizona. With the Cardinals last season, he played in 15 games, netting nine receptions for 129 yards. Housler is an athletic tight end who has the potential to stretch the defense in the passing game. He has the dynamic to be a tough matchup for opposing defenses. He was underutilized in Arizona, topping out at just 45 receptions in a season. He will fit into the lineup as a F-tight end, according to Browns Head Coach Mike Pettine. It will be interesting to see if Housler can be productive with more consistent playing time next season.
Contributing Tight Ends/Fullbacks: TE Gary Barnidge, TE Jim Dray and FB/TE Malcolm Johnson
The Browns have a slew of backup tight ends/fullbacks who could see some time on the field for the team next season. Tight end Gary Barnidge, tight end Jim Dray and fullback/tight end Malcolm Johnson will be the main players to contribute from the group besides Housler. Without a true reliable starting tight end solidified, the Browns could play the position by committee. Last season, Pro Football Focus graded Gary Barnidge’s season with a 0.3 grade and Jim Dray’s season with a minus-6.4.
Gary Barnidge is a solid tight end who is most valuable in blocking situations. Last season in 13 games with the Browns, he had 13 receptions for 156 yards. Barnidge does not flash with amazing athleticism or pass catching ability. He is on the team to block and he does that pretty well, grading out with a 1.0 grade in blocking situations by Pro Football Focus. He is used in packages where two tight ends are needed with one sticking around to help block. His value on the team is very high because of his ability to block better than any of the other tight ends.
Jim Dray is a pass catching tight end, using his size to gain advantage in the passing game. Last season with the Browns, he played in all 16 games, netting 17 receptions for 242 yards and one touchdown. He gives the quarterback a big target to throw to. In blocking situations, Dray is average, especially in run blocking. His true value on the team is as a big body passing target for the quarterbacks to throw to. It will be interesting to see his role this season with the addition of Housler taking over as the main pass catching tight end.
Malcolm Johnson was the Browns sixth-round pick from Mississppi State. In 2014 as a senior, he caught 28 receptions for 380 yards and three touchdowns. With the Browns, he will most likely be the team’s main H-back. His versatility will allow him to lineup in the backfield, as a tight end and even out wide. Johnson is a physical player with good athleticism to be a hybrid offensive player for the Browns offense. It will all come down to whether he can get comfortable with his roles as a H-back and playing at the next level in the NFL. But his unique ability should allow him to gain snaps on offense next season.
These three players, Barnidge, Dray and Johnson, will have some sort of impact on the Browns offense this year. Each one brings a different skillset or trait to the table that will allow them to get snaps in certain situations. Johnson could be the most interesting player of the three, possessing the most upside and talent of the three players. But, I believe Housler will be the main passing tight end on the offense with these three playing certain packages.
Strictly Special Team Contributors: TE E.J. Bibbs
E.J. Bibbs is a 2015 undrafted free agent from Iowa State. As a senior last season, he had 45 receptions for 382 yards and eight touchdowns. Bibbs is an interesting player, who could make it on the Browns roster because of his physicality and athleticism that fits well as a special teams contributor. It will be hard for Bibbs to gain snaps behind the four players already mentioned, but his role on the squad could be on special teams. With his toughness and mindset, he would be a good addition to the Browns coverage teams. But, he could be out of luck if the team decides to limit the number of tight ends/fullbacks who are on the roster to four.
Other Tight Ends/Fullbacks on Roster: TE Kevin Haplea and TE Randall Telfer
The Browns also have Kevin Haplea and Randall Telfer on the roster as tight ends. Haplea will have the hardest time making the squad, after being mostly just a blocking tight end in college. He is a limited passing threat and will struggle to make the team. Randall Telfer will most likely make the team, after being drafted by the Browns in the sixth round this past draft. Telfer would be considered in one of the earlier categories, but he will most likely miss most of the season to heal his foot fracture he suffered at USC. His contributions will most likely start, if at all, in the 2016 NFL season.
Biggest Strength: Versatility
The Browns tight end group is filled with differing skillsets and talents from each one of the players. The team will be able to adjust to certain situations and insert a player with the given skillset needed to succeed. Housler is an athletic passing threat, Gary Barnidge is a tough blocker, Jim Dray is a big receiving target and Malcolm Johnson is a versatile hybrid fullback/tight end. Each one of these four players will be showcased in certain situations. It gives the coaches options and flexibility to adjust the group based on a given situation.
Biggest Weakness: Playmaking
With the loss of Pro Bowl tight end Jordan Cameron, the Browns are looking for a playmaking tight end who can create mismatches for the an opposing defense. The team will be in need of a player who can make plays as a receiving tight end. Housler is the best bet to try and fill this need, but his career has been too inconsistent to rely on him to replace Pro Bowl Cameron. Malcolm Johnson could be a playmaker for the offense, but he will need to develop quickly to the NFL playing level. Overall, the Browns are without a true playmaker at the tight end/fullback position.
Biggest Position Battle: Rob Housler vs. Gary Barnidge vs. Jim Dray vs. Malcolm Johnson
The biggest battle this offseason will be between Rob Housler, Gary Barnidge, Jim Dray and Malcolm Johnson. These four will compete for the most snaps of the tight end/fullback group. These players will fight to be the main man of the group. Housler has the talent and athleticism to be the main guy, but his inconsistencies in his career make him far from a sure thing. It could just end up being a position by committee where the coaches insert certain players based on the situation and what the team is looking for from the position.
Grade: C-
The Browns tight end/fullback group is one with a lot of questions and not a lot of answers. After losing the team’s only real receiving threat in Jordan Cameron, the Browns are lacking a true offensive threat in the tight end/fullback group. Rob Housler could be the guy who can replace Cameron, but his production has not lived up to his talent as of yet in the NFL. The team has solid depth at the position with players of differing skills, but it is still not a group to make any opposing team afraid. The Browns tight end/fullback group is a position with a lot of unknowns and questions coming into the 2015 NFL season.
All stats (unless noted otherwise) are from ESPN.com
19 Comments
If you extend TE/FB to include H-back, then we might be able to include Pryor as a potential extension and add to the play-making category. I think he has a better shot there than attempting to make himself as a legit WR against top corners.
I’ll say this… Housler will probably catch the most balls (if he stays healthy), but I think Barnidge is going to get the most snaps and will really be the “starter” at tight end. The Browns are going to run the ball a ton this year, so it doesn’t make sense to have the weakest blocker of the group playing in-line on very many snaps. I think Housler could spend a lot of his time split out wide, so effectively acting as a big wide receiver rather than a true tight end (a Cameron-esque deployment).
Gun-to-my-head, this is the group I think we will see on the field for the first snap against the Jets (and yes, it will be a running play):
QB – McCown
RB – Crow
WR1 – Bowe
WR2 – Hartline
WR3 – Hawkins
TE – Barnidge
LT – Thomas
LG – Bitonio
C – Mack
RG – Greco
RT – Schwartz
Whoa there Pat. You don’t need to point a gun to your head until at least week 10 most seasons.
QB – McCown
RB – Crow
WR1 – Bowe
WR2 – Hartline
WR3 – Hawkins
TE – Barnidge
LT – Thomas
LG – Bitonio
C – Mack
RG – Erving
RT – Schwartz (until I see Bowie healthy in at least a preseason game)
Never do tomorrow what you can do today, Bode. Procrastination is the thief of time.
Agreed Erving at RG and this is awesome. When the heck are we ever going to see Bowie? I know I’ve seen enough of Schwartz.
By doing tomorrow what you could have done today, you have given yourself a gift of more time in the present.
What is the PFF Scale? -8 sounds awful but without any context it might be ok.
Based on a theoretically improved OL, I’m going to go with Dray.
He blocks ok, and is a sneaky good pass catcher.
I like the PFF numbers for many positions, but never did like them for TEs. They are too reliant on being utilized to their strengths. For instance, a pass-catching TE used too much in run-blocking will score low (though it may help the offense to throw the opposition off), etc.
Even PFF would say that you cannot take their grades purely as a stand-alone measure of what a TE might do. Here are there FA grades for the last 2 classes of FA TE’s:
https://www.profootballfocus.com/blog/2015/02/21/2015-top-free-agents-tight-ends/
https://www.profootballfocus.com/blog/2014/02/23/ranking-the-2014-free-agents-tight-ends/
-8 is better than Cameron’s -10.2. UPGRADE!!
There ya go!
Suspect Farmer will be watching the waiver wire closely at roster cut time. This is an awfully iffy group and there’s bound to be some ok tight ends who will fall victim to a numbers game elsewhere.
Could be this season for Bowie… I think that camp battle between him and Schwartz will be the most furious. Erving could beat out Greco as well, but I just get this vibe that they love Erving as a do-everything backup right now until Mack leaves in free agency.
Schwartz is the weak link no doubt about it so whoever replaces him is fine by me. Let him and Greco be the backups.
I think you’re too quick to say that a rookie (Erving) and a guy who had one year of success (Bowie) are better than Greco and Schwartz without even seeing them play for the Browns. I don’t think it’s that cut and dry at all.
Farmer didn’t use a first round pick on Erving for him to sit as a backup solely for Alex Mack. I’m pretty confident by game 1 you will see Erving starting somewhere on the right side. Who knows maybe he’ll end up at RT although I think C/G is more suitable.
Sure he did. The first thing out of Farmer’s mouth was that he loves Erving’s versatility. He’s not just Mack’s backup… he’s pretty much everyone’s backup on the line. And I don’t think Farmer has a problem using him like that for his rookie season and then having him slide in as a starter next season once he really understands the NFL better.
You just watch.
Fine, now you see Bowie. He does, however, need to work on his blocking techniques.