Wow. We thought that the Browns would be players in the UFA market, but my goodness this is crazy!
According to Barry McBride over at The Orange and Brown Report, the Browns have been extremely busy the last two days. (Do you think the Browns have a fax repairman on site for days like this, just in case?) How busy? Try 34 players signed to at least a try-out contract! Thirty-four? Could that be right? Wow that’s a lot of players. In fact, that’s nearly 7 UFAs for every 1 draft pick!
Do any of these guys have an actual shot at making the roster? Could they make the practice squad, or are they simply “camp fillers”? Keeping in mind that the league has an 80 man limit to the number of players allowed to participate at training camp, will many of these guys make it that far? (The league recently voted down a proposal to expand that to 86 players, a move which ESPN’s John Clayton thinks owners will later regret.) The Browns currently have 71 players on the roster, plus the 5 draft picks that they just signed. That leaves 4 spots open.
Here’s a breakdown of the roster by position. Defensive Backs-11, Defensive Linemen- 12, Line Backers- 12, Offensive Linemen-14 (if you count Pontbriand), Quarterbacks- 3, Runningbacks- 4, Fullbacks- 2, Tight Ends- 5, Wide Receivers- 10, Punters- 2, and 1 Kicker. (Note these include the 5 draft picks, Alex Hall was added to the LB’s because that is what the Browns listed him as on the roster.)
The UFA signings-
DE Xavier Mitchell Tennessee Chris Steuber (Scout.com) QB Craig Hormann Columbia ESPN and the Columbia Official Site CB Darnell Terrell Missouri Adam Caplan (Scout.com) DE Chase Ortiz TCU Adam Caplan (Scout.com) RB Tony Temple Missouri Kansas City Star K Jason Reda Illinois Chicago Tribune LB Nick Moore Baylor KWTX.com WR Lance Leggett Miami (FL) TheLedger.com CB Robbie Powell Purdue Journal and Chronicle Online CB Jonathan Zenon Louisville LSU Reveille.com RB Travis Thomas Notre Dame Notre Dame Athletics OL James Lee South Carolina St thetandd.com CB Jonathan Zenon LSU 2theadvocate.com OT Brian Stamper Vanderbilt Nashville City Paper LB Jermain Dias Virginia Herald-Dispatch.com TE Kolo Kapanui West Texas A&M Star Bulletin OL Eric Young Tennessee Goupstate.com WR Brandon Copeland Bridgewater Bridgewater Football DT Brian Shaeferling Lindenwood St. Louis Post-Dispatch WR James Banks Carson-Newman Go Vols Extra TE Ben Barkema Iowa State Quad Cities Times CB Jerrid Gaines Miami (OH) Dayton Daily News S Justin Harrison Illinois Pantagraph.com DT Steven Friend CMU Morning Sun P Ben Woods Buffalo Sharon Herald QB Kevin Hoyng * Dayton Dayton Daily News WR/CB Andrew Hawkins * Toledo Ed Thompson (Scout.com) RB Austin Scott * Penn State MCall.com CB Gerard Lawson Oregon State Oregon Live DT Steven Friend CMU Morning Sun WR Matt Champa Dayton Dayton Daily News DT Kyle Lockett Urbana Press of Atlantic City WR Chris Schubert * Oberlin Elyria Chronicle-Telegram RB DeShawn Baker Georgia Times and Democrat
So the question remains, which of these guys will make the camp roster? I think Jason Reda is nearly a lock. No way the Browns want to go through camp with only one kicker. Do we need to be reminded of the Scott Player era? That leaves 3 spots left. The smart money would be on at least one of the CB’s making it. I wouldn’t be at all surprised if they wanted to keep one of the QB’s around as well. You are allowed an emergency QB roster spot during the season, stands to reason one of these guys would have a shot at that. I’d love to see one of the RB’s make it and push the guys we currently have.
What inside info do you have on any of these guys? Does a name jump out at you?
Author: Rick
Rick is a co-founder and editor of WFNY. His love of Cleveland sports is surpassed only by his faith and love of his family. Follow him on Twitter- @rickwfny.Rick has written 743 articles for Waiting for Next Year.
Gotta love to see my cousin, Matt Champa on the list. I hereby christen the, “The Shifty Slovenian”.
They do this every year, maybe not quite this many but they need a certain amount of rookies to participate in the rookie camp next week. only a few will actually make the final roster, and i would put money on at least one being a DB
Austin Scott, Eric Young and Jonathan Zenon are money.
Kevin Hoyng (a local to where I live) is listed at QB but will be trying to make it at DB/Safety. Blazing fast and a great athlete. But looooong odds, as for most everyone on that list.
Champa can catch anything remotely close to him and we loved having him down at Dayton.
Sounds like we have a candidate for WFNY player correspondent. You think he’d be willing to share his story Consultantnomo?
I gotta agree, Spence. I watched Scott enough to see what he can do, if he keeps his head on straight. At 6″ 225lbs, he can be a load with decent speed. 4.5-4.6
Zenon (LSU, not Louisville) escapes me as to how he went undrafted. Can’t imagine many 3 yr SEC DB starters go undrafted. His speed is a big knock, but that’s not the end-all.
I’ll shoot a couple of emails. My guess would be post-camp at best.
Dayton Flyers football players getting a shot, cool. Pretty neat opportunity for DII kids.
Dayton is not a Division II school, Dayton is a Division I, FCS school, ( formally known as I-AA ).
Dayton Football is a non-scholarship D-1AA (can’t bring myself to call it that subdivision bs) program. Used to be DIII.
Somehow DetroitFlyer’s post wasn’t there at 7:45. Or I’m blind. Or it was in moderation limbo.
Yeah, sorry about that…just checked in. Actually, sorry isn’t the right word. This is a volunteer thing after all…:)
Darnell Terrell should be a CB to make it through. Of all these guys, he’s probably one of the few that got a signing bonus. Zenon makes sense as well.
I’m on board with Scott. Too much talent not to bring him into a true practice situation.
I would think they’d bring in a QB to make four teams. I’ll go with Hoyng, just because he’s a localish kid, and Savage loves dem neighborhood boys.
I may be a RedHawk homer, but Gaines is pretty decent CB and ahs a shot of making the team as a special teamer.
The upside of Kevin Hoyng is that he is a fantastic athlete. He is trying out as a free safety because that is the position that he matches up with best from a speed, size, football smarts, and overall athletic ability. But…. He would also be a great special teams player and he could absolutely serve as a third string / emergency QB. If you compare his size and weight to the kid from Columbia, you will see why the kid from Columbia was brought in…. It is really too bad that the NFL is so size obsessed with QB’s these days. If you are not 6′ 3″ at least, it is very hard to get a look…. I think many potentially good QB’s do not get a shot because they are not Joe Flacco or Big Ben.
I think what Kevin brings to the table versus anyone else is the ability to contribute in a number of ways. FS, QB, special teams, and I think he could even be a receiver if need be….
Still, as was mentioned earlier, I think his odds are long, but having watched him for the last few years at Dayton, I will not be surprised at all to see him sign a free agent contract and be invited to camp.
I admit to being biased, but I’m telling you that kid is one amazing athlete. You may or may not know, but in the PFL Kevin was voted by the league coaches as the offensive player of the year OVER Josh Johnson, QB of the University San Diego who was drafted in the 5th round by Tampa Bay….
good stuff, detroit. coldwater breeds some special players (see: this year’s upset champs).