WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, W.Va. — The Cleveland Browns held their fastest and most competitive practice of training camp Thursday morning at the Greenbrier Resort.
Pro Bowl tight end David Njoku dominated. The defense had its moments, too, and running back D’Onta Foreman suffered a head injury that provided a scary moment. Foreman was immobilized and later flown via helicopter to a Roanoke, Va., hospital, but he was released Thursday afternoon and scans were negative. Foreman was injured during a special teams drill.
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Njoku was Deshaun Watson’s most frequent target, but the play of the day came on a touchdown pass of around 40 yards as Watson found second-year receiver Cedric Tillman in stride. The ball had seemingly perfect placement, and Tillman accelerated to get around veteran cornerback Justin Hardee Sr. to catch it.
QB1 with long dart to CED 🎯 @deshaunwatson | @Ctillman04 pic.twitter.com/eA6T4WzggH
— Cleveland Browns (@Browns) August 1, 2024
It was the Browns’ second practice in full pads, but there were no competitive offense versus defense periods in the first. Coach Kevin Stefanski runs a deliberate camp with an emphasis on fundamentals, and over seven practices here we’ve mostly seen Watson throw short passes to the perimeter.
That changed a little bit Tuesday as Watson started to look further down the field and backup quarterback Jameis Winston threw a bomb to young wide receiver Matt Landers for a touchdown. Watson seemed intentional about trying to push the ball downfield Thursday. He got mixed results. But after the Tillman touchdown, Watson improvised and found Njoku open in the middle for a gain of around 15. The Browns are still monitoring Watson closely as part of his return from season-ending shoulder surgery, but he’s been a full participant over the first week of camp.
The defense struck back later in practice. Two Watson deep throws in the final team drill were well covered, and safety Grant Delpit intercepted a Watson pass over the middle on the final play of the session. It was the first interception Watson has thrown in competitive settings during training camp. Though Watson’s downfield accuracy has been inconsistent, the volume of deep throws over the last two practices combined with the highlight passes Thursday probably makes for the kind of progress Stefanski wants to see considering the coach said Cleveland remains in the installation phase.
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We’ll have a much better gauge of the progress — by Watson and the offense as a whole — in two weeks when the Browns spend two days practicing against the Minnesota Vikings. The Browns wrap up the Greenbrier portion of camp Friday before returning to Cleveland. Their first open practice at their Berea, Ohio, facility is set for Sunday afternoon.
Target king
The first play of 11-on-11 in full pads went to Njoku, who was open in the middle and caught a strike from Watson. Njoku’s rare combination of size and speed makes him a tough cover. The first of his two notable receptions in full team drills followed a dominant showing in the one-on-one period when Njoku beat Delpit and fellow safety Juan Thornhill.
Njoku and Thornhill matched up on the deciding play of the one-on-one session, and Thornhill never really had a chance as Watson threw one to Njoku at the goal line. The defense and defensive coaching staff did pushups as the last play made the offense the victor.
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It was here at the Greenbrier last year when we saw signs of a Njoku breakout. The tight end seems to be operating with confidence, and he spiked the ball in celebration after the catch with Thornhill defending him and after a previous catch on which he used his body to keep Delpit away. Njoku’s big December last season came after Watson was out for the year, but the two have shown off a growing — and impressive — connection this week. They’ll need it to continue for the Browns to reach their lofty goals this season.
Roll call
New wide receiver Jerry Jeudy was only in individual drills, but he was a first-time practice participant Thursday. Stefanski said both Jeudy and reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year Myles Garrett were “close” to being back, but Garrett still hasn’t practiced. Garrett and Jeudy were at least participants in the team’s walk-through periods early in the week.
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The Browns were down two linebackers Thursday as Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah (unknown) did not participate in practice and Tony Fields II also was out. Fields wore a protective boot on his right foot. Veteran defensive tackle Shelby Harris missed a second straight practice with an unknown injury, and second-year safety Ronnie Hickman left after suffering an apparent injury during one-on-one drills.
Second-year cornerback Cameron Mitchell played with the No. 1 defense as the slot cornerback. He opened camp working on the side with the likes of Jeudy and Garrett and had returned to individual drills earlier in the week. Veteran defensive end Za’Darius Smith was back to practice after missing two days for personal reasons.
wake up! it’s the first (practice pics) of the month!
— Cleveland Browns (@Browns) August 1, 2024
There’s been no change on the offensive tackle front with Jedrick Wills Jr. and Jack Conklin still on the physically unable to perform list. James Hudson III continues to play with the No. 1 offense at left tackle, with Dawand Jones first up on the right. Jones left practice briefly Thursday and appeared to be grabbing at his shoulder, but he returned to the lineup for the final team drills.
In most camp competitive drills, the Browns shuffle running backs and receivers in and out of the lineup on almost every play. Jerome Ford has been first in the running back line, with Pierre Strong Jr. and Foreman generally next. Wide receiver Michael Woods II continues to stand out, and though most of his receptions this week have come from Winston, Woods did seem to get an increased number of reps with Watson in the back half of Thursday’s practice.
Winston’s arm strength is apparent and impressive. Dorian Thompson-Robinson doesn’t get a lot of team reps with the focus on Watson, but the second-year quarterback has also had a good week throwing. It’s too early to know how the roster will shake out, but it’s fair to believe Thompson-Robinson is competing with Tyler Huntley for the team’s No. 3 quarterback job.
(Photo: Sue Ogrocki / Associated Press)
Zac Jackson is a staff writer for The Athletic covering the Cleveland Browns. He is also the host of the "A to Z" podcast alongside Andre Knott. Previously, Zac covered the Browns for Fox Sports Ohio and worked for Pro Football Talk. Follow Zac on Twitter @AkronJackson
