CLEVELAND: Browns rookie quarterback Cody Kessler received a chance Saturday to test his arm in cool, windy conditions on the lakefront at FirstEnergy Stadium.
Although the second practice of rookie minicamp was in May, it felt more like November.
So how did the 6-foot-1¼, 220-pound Kessler, widely criticized for possessing less-than-ideal arm strength, fare during his outing at Fan Fest?
Some of his passes were wobbly. Some were on point.
“I didn’t see any issue with his arm strength and the weather,” coach Hue Jackson said. “Cody has all the characteristics that we think he can handle any elements, any situation. Obviously, he’s just got to keep growing and keep getting better. He’s playing in the National Football League. The game is tough. You see he threw one to the other team today. Can’t do that. Sometimes you’ve just go to say uncle and throw the ball away. He’ll learn that as he goes, too. He had another good day.”
Inside linebacker Scooby Wright intercepted a short pass from Kessler on an out route. Outside linebacker Emmanuel Ogbah batted another throw down.
But Kessler, a third-round pick (No. 93 overall) from the University of Southern California, also made the play of the day by launching a deep pass to wide receiver Rashard Higgins for a touchdown pass of about 50 yards.
Although not many fans braved the weather to watch practice, Jackson liked the conditions because he thought Kessler benefited from the experience.
“You like to have all the elements if you can, whether it’s rain and snow and whether it’s hot,” he said. “You like to see guys perform in all those elements because we’re going to face them all. That’s another opportunity for us to prepare and get better.”
Crowded front seven
With the Browns drafting Ogbah in the second round (No. 32 overall) and defensive end Carl Nassib in the third (No. 65), high-priced veterans like outside linebacker Paul Kruger and defensive end Desmond Bryant could be on borrowed time in Cleveland.
But head of football operations Sashi Brown spoke as if he plans on keeping them. They’re under contract through 2017.
“[The rookies] aren’t at the top of our depth chart right now,” Brown said. “So they’re going to have to compete and earn their way, every one of them. We certainly feel like they can ascend to become starters for us. They’re not that right now, and Des and Krug are the guys we’re counting on right now to perform for us. If some of these young guys emerge, that’s a great thing, but they’ve got to earn their way.”
He also offered an interesting assessment of Bryant.
“Very physical, hard to handle, he’s got tremendous strength and plays with a good motor,” Brown said. “We’d like to have that motor be taken up a bit of a notch so that we get a little bit more consistency. I think as [nose tackle] Danny [Shelton] plays around him and as a system, we’ll be able to help him.”
Brown added he likes defensive linemen John Hughes and Xavier Cooper.
Pumping up picks
Brown and vice president of player personnel Andrew Berry touted some of the players they drafted last month in front of fans during a panel discussion.
• Brown said the team received plenty of calls from teams interested in trading for the 32nd pick, but the franchise wanted to stay put and select Ogbah.
“We were surprised he was still there,” Brown said. “There were a number of players we were looking at and hoping could get to No. 32, and he was No. 1 on our list.”
Berry said Ogbah “truly wreaked havoc [for Oklahoma State] over the past two seasons in the Big 12. It’s rare that you find an individual that has his combination of size, athleticism and edge speed. His combination of power and speed was very attractive.”
• Brown said Nassib proved last season at Penn State he’s at least as relentless as Ohio State defensive end Joey Bosa, who went to the San Diego Chargers third overall.
“We’ll slide Carl [to defensive end in our 3-4 scheme] and give him a chance to develop there,” Brown said. “He’s about 275, 280 pounds. We think he can add another 10 or 15 pounds to that, and he’s 6-7 and long. If you’re an interior lineman, that’s a nightmare to handle. He plays with a relentless motor. I know people talked about that with Bosa at the top of the draft. Nassib probably has as good a motor if not better.”
• Brown is aware many observers thought the Browns reached by picking Princeton tight end Seth DeValve in the fourth round (No. 138 overall).
“People were scratching their head, I think,” Brown said. “But they won’t be scratching their head this fall.”
Added Berry: “It’s his athletic ability, it’s his speed, it’s his explosion. We truly believe he can be a very strong asset for us in the passing game from multiple spots, whether it’s in the backfield, at traditional tight end or when flexed out.”
Reflecting on blockbuster
Brown bragged a bit about the haul the Browns received by trading with the Philadelphia Eagles eight days before the draft began.
The Browns surrendered the No. 2 overall pick and a fourth-round choice in 2017 for picks in the first (No. 8), third (No. 77) and fourth (No. 100) rounds this year, a first-round selection next year and a second-round choice in 2018.
“I was a little surprised we got as much as we did, but some hard negotiating and Andrew was a big help in that, keeping me at bay and not pulling the trigger too soon,” Brown said. “We were able to come away with what should be the foundation of the championship team that we’re going to build.”
Of course, the Browns traded down again to No. 15, where they selected Baylor wide receiver Corey Coleman.
“We felt like we could still get the No. 1 wide receiver on our board, which was coveted by us certainly in the building to support [quarterback] Robert [Griffin III] and what we want to do on offense.”
Brown’s comment about providing Griffin with a weapon is telling. The team hasn’t named him the starter, but he’s clearly the front-runner.
Extra points
• Tight end Randall Telfer suffered what appeared to be a pulled left hamstring when he caught a short pass and fell. He threw the ball and repeatedly punched the ground. An athletic trainer wrapped the back of Telfer’s left leg. Telfer sat out all last season while recovering from a foot injury.
• Jackson said 6-1, 240-pound Terrell Watson is a running back, not a fullback. Watson spent part of last season on the Cincinnati’s practice squad when Jackson was the Bengals’ offensive coordinator.
• The Browns will hold their third and final practice of rookie minicamp Sunday. It’ll be closed to the media.
Nate Ulrich can be reached at nulrich@thebeaconjournal.com. Read the Browns blog at www.ohio.com/browns. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/NateUlrichABJ and on Facebook www.facebook.com/abj.sports.