The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
Rookie JOK is getting up to speed just in time
Rookie looking forward to facing Chiefs’ Kelce
Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah was in Dallas last Jan. 17 and watched the Kansas City Chiefs beat the Browns in a divisional playoff game on television during a break in his preparation for the NFL scouting combine a month later in Indianapolis.
Many plays turned the tide in the 22-17 loss, but the one that haunts the Browns is backup quarterback Chad Henne rumbling around the left side for 13 yards on third-and-14 with two minutes remaining. One play later, Henne completed a pass to Tyreek Hill for a five-yard gain to ice the game for the Chiefs.
Henne is no Usain Bolt, but the Browns defense couldn’t catch Henne any easier than they could have caught the famous Jamaican sprinter on that play.
Owusu-Koramoah, who early in training camp said he had a premonition the Browns would draft him, after practice Sept. 6 in Berea said he could have tracked Henne down.
“I don’t want to speak too much on myself, boost myself up and things like that, but, yeah. most def,” JOK said.
Henne is unlikely to play Sept. 12 when the Browns and Chiefs open their seasons at 4:25 p.m. in Kansas City, but Owusu-Koramoah will be tasked with an even bigger challenge — corralling starting quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who was out with a toe injury during Henne’s dramatic run.
Adding covering elite tight end Travis Kelce to his chore chart will give the coaches an early glimpse of what general manager Andrew Berry got by trading up seven spots to get JOK with the 52nd pick of the draft.
“It’s not foreign to me to have some type of matchup that’s as such,” OwusuKoramoah said, referring to Kelce. “I watched a lot of film, had to watch a lot of film to be able to be ready for a guy that’s as talented as him.
“So we’ll be ready. I’ll be ready and as a team we’re looking forward to game planning and correcting stuff. I’m expecting to have a big role — nickel, some base, stuff like that.”
The Browns selected defensive players with their first two picks in the draft in April. First they took cornerback Greg Newsome
26th in the first round with the idea he would challenge or replace Greedy Williams as the starting right cornerback. Owusu-Koramoah was projected as a firstround pick, but he continued to drop.
Nineteen players were picked in the second round. Owusu-Koramoah was available when the Carolina Panthers were on the clock with the 52nd pick.
Whether JOK at 214 pounds is undersized for a linebacker or because a heart condition that wasn’t revealed until late in predraft physicals scared teams away, the Browns felt fortunate to land Newsome and Owusu-Koramoah. They traded picks 59 and 89 to the Panthers for picks 52 and 113 so they could draft the lean, quick linebacker from Notre Dame.
JOK missed the start of training camp after testing positive for COVID-19 and more recently missed time with a freak injury when a fall in the weight room scraped his eye. Two
stitches were required to repair it. The bad part was he could not wear a helmet while it healed. But he is fine now.
“Obviously, he had that delay there in the beginning, but he made sure to get all that he could out of all of those walkthroughs,” Coach Kevin Stefanski said. “Then he had that injury in the weight room, but he’s overcome that, as well. He’s doing a nice job. He’s continuing to work.
“All of those linebackers, it’s very important to be able to cover in this NFL game. Kansas City has some great tight ends. They have a bunch of different guys in the pass game. The ability to cover is a big deal.”
Owusu-Koramoah said he expects to start, but making “a big impact” is more important to him than being on the field for the first defensive play of the season.
“It’s not about how you start, right?,” Owusu-Koramoah said. “It’s about how you finish, so we’ll see about that.”
Maybe with OwusuKoramoah on the field, the outcome will be different than when the Browns and Chiefs met in Kansas City eight months ago.
Notes
Stefanski said Chase McLaughlin will “for sure” be the Browns’ kicker in Kansas City. … Wide receiver Rashard Higgins (leg), center JC Tretter (undisclosed) and defensive back Troy Hill (leg) returned to practice Sept. 6. It was the first time all of training camp the entire starting defense has been together.
“That’s been the plan all along is to make sure you’re sharp and you’re fresh,” Stefanski said. “We had some guys working through some injuries and continue to do that, but that’s kind of been the plan. Hopefully, guys continue to progress.”
The Browns are off Sept. 7 and then on Sept. 8 will resume preparation for the Chiefs.