How Browns' running backs, pass catchers have looked early in training camp

New York Times

2 days ago

One week into training camp, the only certainty with the Cleveland Browns' running back situation is that the six participating sleep well at night.
During each practice, running backs coach Duce Staley smiles diabolically at his players as he has them go through resistance band drills that include each player carrying 20-pound weighted footballs at the end of the band that connects two running backs. That's sort of the appetizer for Staley's sandbag drill, which puts 35-pound sandbags in each running back's hands for three reps of short-area footwork, each covering about a minute.
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Staley, 50, played his 10 NFL seasons before any of his current players could use him on their Madden video games. Back then, it was five miles — uphill both ways — for Staley to training camps that almost always included two practices per day, sometimes both in full pads. For Staley now, each day starts with a bit of a throwback tonesetter.
'When those drills are done, you see the guys crying a bit,' Staley said. 'Their arms are hurting.'
Staley's group has two returning veterans in Jerome Ford and Pierre Strong Jr. It does not have the full roster it was expected to have, as Quinshon Judkins, the second of Cleveland's two second-round picks, remains unsigned and away from the team in the wake of his July 12 arrest on a domestic violence charge. The team has no timetable for Judkins' eventual return, but the Browns' quest to let the power run game drive the offense continues.
Nobody's saying much about Judkins specifically, but Ford said the players approach it as 'there are more reps for everyone — just more work at this point.' So, a few months after Ford took a pay cut to essentially ensure his roster spot and the Browns drafted a second running back, Dylan Sampson, in the fourth round, a rotation that was supposed to have Judkins as a central figure and likely the eventual touches leader remains open.
Ahmani Marshall, an undrafted rookie who's listed at 225 pounds, is trying to prove he should get further chances and an opportunity to eventually stick. Strong, who's mostly been a special teams player, was first in line early in camp. Ford has only been a full participant in two practices after dealing with a minor injury. Sampson was first up in team drills on Wednesday, but the Browns generally rotate their offensive skill players on every snap during camp practices.
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So, we've seen Ford (210 pounds) and Sampson (200) with all three offensive units as the Browns cycle through quarterbacks and the last phase of their offensive installation.
'Everybody shows up ready to work,' Sampson said. 'No days off with Duce and no days off for any of us pushing each other. There's an intentionality to everything. Every day matters. I think Coach Duce has set high standards, and that's the kind of standard I want to hold myself to.
'I think if we do things the right way right now, we'll be ready for whatever roles we have when it's time to go win football games.'
Wednesday's practice was the first in Kevin Stefanski's six years as head coach that the Browns had a live tackling period. That's part of Stefanski and all of his coaches continuing to try to set a physical tone — and part of finding out which of their runners are ready for life in the AFC North. Ford called the full tackling period 'a really good thing I hope to see again,' and it came two days after Sampson took the loudest hit of training camp thus far from fellow rookie Carson Schwesinger on an inside run.
'I think Dylan got (reminded) that he needs to get his damn pads down,' Staley said.
It's still early for everyone. Six practices in, the Browns have no final answers in their running back rotation.
Stefanski said he rotates the offensive skill players on nearly every play for several reasons. Chief among them is an emphasis on communication, getting the right groups in and out of the huddle, and also keeping as many players as possible involved.
Though the pass-catching groups have clear leaders in wide receiver Jerry Jeudy and tight end David Njoku, the rest of the rotations at those specific positions are as wide open as the running back group at this point.
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Usually, the first players up in three-receiver sets are Jeudy, Cedric Tillman and Jamari Thrash. Diontae Johnson has mostly played with the second and third offensive units, but he's an experienced slot receiver. Wednesday was the most active day for Kaden Davis, who's on his sixth NFL stop after joining the Browns' practice squad late last season.
Davis caught a deep corner route from Dillon Gabriel early in practice and later made a nice catch on a crossing route from Joe Flacco. Veteran DeAndre Carter has mostly been a return specialist in recent years, but he's taken a lot of wide receiver reps also.
Luke Floriea and Gage Larvadain have been the most targeted of the four undrafted rookie receivers, but Kisean Johnson was with Flacco and the No. 1 offense in team drills Tuesday, when Jeudy was mostly given the day off.
.@ShedeurSanders connects on the rollout with @JohnsonKisean 🎯 pic.twitter.com/c8ISkfQBEb
— Cleveland Browns (@Browns) July 30, 2025
Diontae Johnson has no guaranteed money on his one-year deal but has the most career production of the group. After a quiet start to camp, he's been more involved this week. The wide receiver group might eventually make at least one external addition, but thus far it's had one deletion. Michael Woods II was waived-injured on Wednesday, effectively ending his season with the Browns. Assuming Woods clears waivers, he'll revert to the team's injured-reserve list.
Woods was not a roster lock but was in the mix. Now that he's out of the plans, players such as Davis and Carter move closer to roster spots, the rookies move up in the rotation, and the team's personnel department probably revisits its list of bigger receivers who might either be available or become available in August.
It might end up being Diontae Johnson versus Thrash for the primary slot receiver role — or even for a roster spot — but it's too early to know for sure. Special teams will factor in. Davis and Floriea were first up as kickoff returners in one of Wednesday's special teams drills.
This week, we've seen rookie tight end Harold Fannin Jr. sprinkle in with the No. 1 offense more frequently than he did early in camp or in the spring. Regardless of which unit or quarterback with whom he's shared the field, Fannin has been a frequent target.
Given that Fannin is still relatively new to the position and just turned 21 before the start of camp, it's easy to say he's ahead of schedule. Even if that's not wholly accurate, it's clear that the Browns aren't focusing solely on the future for Fannin. Njoku and Fannin are roster locks, and early camp rotations say Blake Whiteheart and Brenden Bates are next.
(Top photo of Dylan Sampson: Jason Miller / Getty Images)