Trade to Browns surprised Osweiler
Brock Osweiler was in a trap as the brutal business of the NFL ambushed him.
The 6-foot-7, 240pound quarterback was golfing March 9 in Arizona when he learned the Houston Texans had traded him to the Cleveland Browns.
“I was standing in a sand trap, and I got a phone call and here we come,” Osweiler said Wednesday in Berea after the second practice of organized team activities.
Osweiler said he didn’t receive a tip-off about the trade, a move the Browns made because they wanted the Texans’ 2018 second-round draft selection.
Armed with a surplus of salary-cap space, the Browns relieved the Texans of the $16 million guaranteed left on Osweiler’s contract to acquire the pick. The Browns didn’t envision Osweiler becoming a factor for them, but they haven’t traded or cut him, and now he’s heavily involved in an open competition for their starting quarterback job.
“My expectation is always to start, but that’s not my decision to make,” Osweiler said in his first public comments since the trade. “Now, if I came out here and told you guys I wanted to be the backup, I’m in the wrong business. … I want to help this football team win games. But I know there is a lot of work that goes into that and ultimately I need to earn that on the practice field.”
Osweiler practiced Wednesday as the No. 2 quarterback while Cody Kessler worked with the first team.
“Any time you’re in a competition with other guys at your position, it brings out the best in you,” Osweiler said. “And it’s certainly the best thing for the team because the best player at that position is going to play and ultimately that should lead to wins.
“We’re all pushing each other. We’re all helping each other out. There’s no friction in the room or anything like that. We’re just working as a unit, which is great to see because I think it’s going to bring out the best in everybody.”
Osweiler, who will enter his sixth NFL season in the fall, is the most experienced quarterback of the bunch with a 13-8 record as a starter with Denver and Houston. Kessler, a third-round pick last year, went 0-8 as a starter last season.
“Cody has certainly earned that right (to be the first-team quarterback in OTAs),” Osweiler said. “He played in a lot of football games last year. … But I can promise you I’m going to work as hard as I possibly can every day because nobody plays this game to be a backup or to lose football games.”
Steelers’ Bell gives Groveport donation
Le’Veon Bell, a running back for the Pittsburgh Steelers, has donated $750,000 to his alma mater, Groveport, for a synthetic surface at its stadium. In return, the field, which is expected to be ready for next season, will be named in his honor.
Cowboys’ Elliott sits after car crash
Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott was a passenger in a minor car accident and missed the first three offseason practices as a precaution.
Elliott, the 2016 NFL rushing champion as a rookie out of Ohio State, bumped his head in the crash Sunday night, but running backs coach Gary Brown said Wednesday that Elliott doesn’t have a concussion.
Coach Jason Garrett said Elliott is expected to practice next week.
Pro Bowl returning to Orlando
Orlando will host the Pro Bowl on Jan. 28, 2018, at 3 p.m. and the game will be televised on ESPN and ABC, the NFL announced. Last season, the NFL played its all-star game in Orlando for the first time at Camping World Stadium.