Cleveland Browns Training Camp No. 65
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August 10, 2015Terrelle Pryor may be getting most of the hype, but while he sits on the sidelines nursing an injured hamstring, a wide receiver by the name of Josh Lenz is quietly sneaking into the picture for the Cleveland Browns pass-catching corps.
If you saw any play from last week’s Orange and Browns scrimmage, it was likely the Johnny Manziel touchdown pass occurring on a perfectly executed back-shoulder play to a wide receiver wearing No. 7 — a number typically reserved for a kicker or punter if not a quarterback. That No. 7-wearing lad, however, is Lenz, a 6-foot, 195-pound kid who ultimately caught four passes from three different quarterbacks.
“It’s every year you get some off-the-radar guy that shows up,” Pettine said following the scrimmage. “We saw something in him to bring him here and a lot of that is a credit to Ray (Farmer’s) group. They can find those guys, whether it’s after the draft or wherever we acquire them from, and they can come here and be productive.”
“Those guys” is an obvious applause for players like Taylor Gabriel, Marlon Moore and K’Waun Williams, players who came in to Browns camp a year ago as afterthoughts with veterans ahead of them — Nate Burleson, for example — only to unseat the incumbent and go on to make a difference during the course of the regular season. Gabriel earned his keep in the preseason and went on to finish the season as the No. 17 wide receiver in 2014 (as ranked by Pro Football Focus). This season, the Browns are once again stocked with wide receiver hopefuls, but lack much in the way of franchise-changing producers, making Lenz’s story that much more intriguing.
“You try not to look at [the depth at WR],” said Lenz on Sunday. “You just try going out here every day and doing your job and that’s all you can really do. A lot of it’s out of your hands. The only thing you can do is do your job and do it right when you get the chance to go in there. That’s what I’m trying to do right now.”
Lenz spent all of 2014 on the Colts’ practice squad, one of the best offenses in all of football. No longer with Indy, the Iowa State product is looking to make it with a team that is everything but. Lenz has, after all, made a career out of surprise. He was not invited to the 2013 NFL Combine, but later turned heads with 40-yard dash times of 4.36 and 4.37 at the ISU Pro Day. He added a 38.5-inch vertical and 10-foot-1 broad jump for good measure.
“It comes down to getting an opportunity,” said Lenz. “Some places, you may not get the opportunity or it may not present itself, but you just have to always stay ready. Always stay ready for that opportunity, and when it comes, you have to take advantage of it.
“When I was out in Indy, we had a great group of receivers out there and you knew you had to make every catch that came your way, run those routes against the DBs and do everything right. That’s what I try to focus on doing, working hard, knowing the playbook and doing the right things. Just trying to stay consistent.”
Browns players and coaches have compared Lenz to Brian Hartline, a veteran receiver who quietly comes into practice and does his job with little in the way of words. Unfortunately for Lenz, Hartline also presents a hurdle for his future with the team as he’s one of several wide receivers who are essentially guaranteed a job (along with Dwayne Bowe, Andrew Hawkins, and Taylor Gabriel). If Lenz is going to make the team, it will come at the expense of a veteran, or a high-upside, hype-filled player like Pryor.
For what it’s worth, Pettine stated on Sunday afternoon that the front office has yet to even consider the 53-man roster. Good news for Lenz is that he’s already turned heads in Berea and has four more preseason games to show what he can bring, whether it be running routes or returning punts. Good news for fans: Lenz appears to not be resting on his laurels, as Friday night’s scrimmage was just another day in the preseason gamut.
“We’ve been out here for a couple weeks now,” Lenz said. “It wasn’t a whole lot different Friday night, just a lot more people there. Like I said, it just goes back to doing your job, doing it right, getting an opportunity and making the most of it.”
6 Comments
“Browns players and coaches have compared Lenz to Brian Hartline…”
Of course they did.
Runs 4.36 in the 40? I feel a Spike Lee movie coming on.
Silly, really. He reminds me more of Brian Brennan.
White Men Can’t Run?
He could be the 2015 Charles Johnson! You’re welcome, Mr. Bridgewater.
haha. who cares? That’s the problem – the Browns are so concerned with squabbling for the scraps from Longshank’s table that they’ve missed their God-given right to something better.
Stop looking for the next Taylor Gabriel and start looking for the next Jerry Rice.