Positions (other than QB) to watch during spring football
Linebacker tops the list with four key players needing to be replaced.
Ohio State football coach Ryan Day talked plenty about the quarterbacks while previewing spring drills, but that will not be the only position of interest in Columbus over the next few weeks.
The coach named five other spots he’s interested in seeing progress between now and the spring game scheduled for April 17:
1. Linebacker
“We lost four guys there, so that’s going to be interesting to see in that room who steps up,” Day said. “There’s a lot of production in that room that needs to be accounted for, so that’s going to be very important in the spring.”
Gone are Pete Werner, Tuf Borland, Justin Hilliard and Baron Browning. Next up are K’Vaughn Pope, Teradja Mitchell, Dallas Gant and Craig Young along with Tommy Eichenberg, Mitchell
Melton and Cody Simon.
2. Safety
“I think in the back end there’s some guys who have done some really good things,” Day said. “Lathan (Ransom) stepped up in a big way late. Josh Proctor really flashed at times, and so there’s some guys back there that have done some things, but they weren’t as consistent or didn’t play as much as some of the other guys during the season so we really want to see how that back end starts to shake out as some new faces get in there.”
Marcus Williamson is another regular back, but this is a group that could be reshuffled after
Buckeyes
FootballFocus.com graded last season.
The Browns drafted Higgins in the fifth round in 2016 out of Colorado State University. Only three-time Pro Bowl left guard Joel Bitonio and long snapper Charley Hughlett have played for the franchise longer. Higgins, Bitonio and Hughlett are the only players still on the roster who endured the team’s stretch of 1-31 from 2016-17.
Higgins hit the open market last offseason, too, but the duration was much shorter this time around. He appeared to be on his way out of town in 2020 until the Browns reached an agreement with him on a oneyear, $910,000 contract in late April, about six weeks after free agency had kicked off. Berry had been the GM for about three months, but he was the club’s vice president of player personnel when it drafted Higgins.
Last fall, Higgins said he had contract offers from other teams in 2020, but Mayfield convinced him to stay in Cleveland. The two have had undeniable chemistry on and off the field since the Browns drafted Mayfield first overall in 2018. When throwing the ball in the direction of Higgins, Mayfield had a passer rating of 126.1 this past season, according to PFF.
Higgins lobbied to return to the Browns again in recent months, telling beat writers Dec. 10 on Zoom, “I would love to be here.” On Feb. 26, he doubled down during a radio interview with “The Next Level” on ESPN Cleveland WKNR (850-AM).
“Don’t give up on me. I never gave up on y’all,” Higgins said when “The Next Level” co-host Emmett Golden asked him what he wanted to tell Browns fans about his future. “Tell Andrew [Berry] to send the papers, and I’m signing wherever I’ve got to sign. That’s all I’ve got to say.”
Berry responded Dec. 3 in a Zoom with beat writers.
“I won’t touch on the specific dialogue that we’ve had, but I think suffice to say we’d like to have Rashard back,” Berry said. “It’s obvious he played a key role for us this past year, and we have a really positive history with him. But free agency can be difficult and obviously he’s earned the right to make the decision that’s most appropriate for him. And we’ll maintain consistently good communication with him and his reps, and we’ll see where it goes.”
It went the way Higgins, 26, wanted it to go.
The outcome means the Browns are positioned to run it back with a receiving corps of starters Beckham and Jarvis Landry, Higgins, Donovan Peoples-Jones and KhaDarel Hodge, who received a restricted free agent tender from the club on Monday. Adding a speedster to the group will likely be something to watch in the April 29-May 1 draft.
Higgins has started 12 of the 67 regular-season games in which he’s appeared with the Browns. He has 113 career catches on 178 targets for 1,615 yards and 11 touchdowns. Higgins celebrates his touchdowns by pretending to walk the red carpet in the end zone. Now he’ll have a chance to continue to strut in Cleveland.
Natson to re-sign with Browns
Returner and wide receiver JoJo Natson had his first season with the Browns cut short, but he’ll get a chance to continue his career with them.
Natson agreed Thursday to re-sign with the Browns for one year, a person familiar with the situation confirmed.
The University of Akron product’s 2020 season ended when he suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament Sept. 27 against the Washington Football Team.
Natson is the third unrestricted free agent the Browns have agreed to re-sign this week. The others are receiver Rashard Higgins and linebacker Malcolm Smith. The Browns also placed a tender on receiver KhaDarel Hodge as a restricted free agent.