Browns Digest

Senior Bowl Weigh-In Takeaways: Who Will Browns be Watching?

The Reese's Senior Bowl began on Tuesday with weigh-ins and measurements. Some of the results will likely impact how the Cleveland Browns view them as they get prepared for the NFL Draft.

Pete Smith

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The Reese's Senior Bowl has gotten underway and Cleveland Browns general manager Andrew Brown is there with members of the team's scouting department. The Browns will have an opportunity to speak with every prospect in attendance in addition to watching the on field action.

Tuesday began with the weigh-ins, providing accurate heights, weights as well as arm length and hand size. Because of how many programs that can be enthusiastic with their listings, this process does have more importance than one might think. That honesty helps to start the process of figuring out who is truly a fit for what the team wants.

There are plenty of prospects in attendance that could be of interest for the Browns. For most of them, the weigh-in merely confirmed why the Browns might like them with a few pleasant surprises. Meanwhile, there were a handful of prospects who weren't quite as advertised. The Browns will have to decide whether to rule out entirely or if it merely forces a slight adjustment in how they rate them.

The Good

Not unexpected, Carter continues to look the part of an excellent edge rusher. The Senior Bowl will allow him the opportunity to compete against higher level competition than he faced as a Cadet. Carter's status with the military sounds like it's been resolved, allowing to play immediately. His age is in a bit of a gray area for the Browns.

Hall possesses a strong build and has a freaky wingspan, which is something that the Browns will like. The Browns have targeted players in the past with an eerily similar build as Hall, once coveting Azeez Ojulari out of Georgia.

Everything looks good here except his wingspan. It's not a surprise that he lacks ballast just looking at him. This merely just confirms it. His height, weight and arm length are all excellent. The Senior Bowl will be a challenging test for him. The one-on-ones could be difficult for him and in run blocking periods, he has a tendency to get too far over his skis, too often ending up on the ground. Still, it's a good week for him to try to work and improve.

Mingo was largely as advertised. The hand size and wingspan are an added bonus, but not a surprise. Mingo's body type is unusual, but he played numerous roles for the Rebels. Additionally, he was one of the better deep threats in college football. He will be one of the more interesting prospects to watch in the individual matchups.

It's difficult to come up with better numbers for the Golden Domer. Foskey has everything teams seek as a pass rushing body type. He was outstanding in 2021 but had a less than stellar 2022 season. It stands to reason that Foskey's using this week to remind teams just how dominant he can be.

Johnson came in an inch and a half lower than his program height. However, since he's a running back, it's not terribly important. What is important is his overall weight because he looks lean. Johnson packs quite a bit of punch as a power back.

In an underwhelming linebacker class, Williams stands out. He was productive for the Green Wave and certainly looks the part as far as linebackers go. People may knock him for his weight, but his wingspan is outstanding, exactly what teams want from the position.

Spears is an explosive running back that showed tremendous speed in college as well as against USC in the bowl game. He looked lean in college, so if he's actually that heavy and carries it well this week, it will only add to his momentum in the draft process.

Wicks looks the part of an X receiver. He's got size, strength and speed. His measurements only work in his favor, especially that wingspan. Wicks also needs a big week because he had an outstanding junior season, but was unimpressive as a senior. He also drops a lot of balls. A good week could send teams back to watch more of his junior tape.

Checks boxes, merely confirms why the Browns will be interested. Benton's arm length is good and his ballast is excellent. He's also one of the youngest nose tackle prospects in this class.

The Not So Good

Pace was one of the most productive linebackers in the country when adding up all the ways he impacted the game. It was obvious he was short, but the lack of wingspan added into that is a concern. Linebackers with longer arms have an easier time keeping blockers out of their body and being able to work their way through trash, using those levers to fight off opponents enroute to the ball.

Robinson was productive for the Seminoles. He's a punishing hitter who can cover. However, he was smaller across the board than expected. It's not a dealbreaker, but it's something to consider for teams evaluating him.

Dell was prolific in college and could dominate the practices this week because of his speed and body control. He list an inch and a half from his listed height, which wouldn't be the end of the world if not for also having short arms and small hands. It limits his catch radius and puts more onus on the quarterback to deliver passes because Dell could have a difficult time adjusting to passes or going up to make plays on the ball.

Rice posted elite production at SMU. And while it may not have a major impact on his draft status, he measured an inch and a half shorter than his program height. Everything else looks fine, including a big wingspan which might take some of the sting out of the missing height.

Horton is an intriguing edge defender with potential to contribute as a pass rusher on the interior. He was productive for TCU and was consistently effective in the playoffs. The shame of it is he measured narrower than expected. His arm length might be okay for the Browns, but they might not end up ranking him as highly as other options because he lacks ballast.

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Pete Smith
PETE SMITH

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