The Browns open the preseason with a win and might be on the path to finally solving the quarterback puzzle. The second preseason game is Monday Night against the G-Men and DT Danny Shelton might miss it due to a sore knee. Rookie TE David Njoku is getting ready for his debut and we may see a lot of S Jabrill Peppers. In the first preseason game we saw DE Myles Garrett who lived up to expectations but the big story was rookie QB DeShone Kizer who looked fantastic! Kizer is still not ready according to HC Hue Jackson, OT Joe Thomas, and QB DeShone Kizer. He isn't ready to start. He looked good on moving up in the pocket, unleashing his strong arm and keeping his eyes trained down field but he was playing against 3rd stringers and was working with a limited playbook. Hue Jackson has to be able to utilize his playbook in order to compete. Starting Kizer now would be a major handicap to the entire offense. The good news is that he moved up to 2nd string and is on a clear starting trajectory for sometime later this season. The first month is brutal going up against AFCN opponents and DeShone isn't ready to face those sorts of complicated blitz packages let alone master the offense to the point that Hue Jackson can have a full gameplan in place.

QUARTERBACK PLAY Starting QB Brock Osweiler and former starting QB Cody Kessler failed to impress but rookie QB DeShone Kizer stepped up to conduct a game winning drive and showcased his big arm. Kizer not only was able to side-step pressure and step up in the pocket he also kept his eyes trained downfield and didn't get a case of happy-feet and he able to get the ball out in a reasonable time frame. Kizer was able to avoid the mechanical issues he displayed in college but it is still too early to tell if he has overcome his mechanical issues. Time will tell on that issue and if he can master more of the offense to the point he is ready to assume the starting role. Have to confess, the kid looked better than I ever expected and he looked better than Mahomes and DeSuan Foster and may have played equal to top rookie QB Mitch Trubisky. We hope Kizer keeps it up Monday Night.

RUNNING BACK PLAY Starting RB Isaiah Crowell is primed to take the next step and is gunning for Adrian Peterson money in next year's free agency. Good luck with that but expect him to run like crazy this year. RB Duke Johnson will be used a lot in the passing game and will get enough carries to be relevant. A lot has been made of 7th round pick Matt Dayes and he performed admirably but don't expect any Cinderella stories. Crow is the starter and Duke is the co-owner of the backfield.

RECEIVER PLAY The team will miss WR Terrelle Pryor. WR Kenny Britt has the size and talks like a #1 wide receiver but he doesn't walk-the-walk. He looked tentative. WR Corey Coleman hasn't stepped up yet either. Add, the absence of TE David Njuko and there is a lack of big play ability with the current state of the receivers. The entire group really needs to step up.

IDP REPORT Sigh of relief. DE Myles Garrett is the real deal. He may not be a top IDP point producer due to double and triple teaming but he will be an NFL force. We are keeping the wraps on LB Jamie Collins but expect huge things this year. And we are hearing good things about rookie S Jabrill Peppers who just inherited the starting strong safety position as SS Ibraheim Campbel went down with injury. DC Greg Williams has stated that Peppers will play multiple positions in the secondary and will even see time at middle linebacker later in the season. Peppers will garner return yardage as well so definitely have him on your radar in return leagues.

Monday Night could go a long way in advancing the development of QB DeShone Kizer. He is slated to take reps in the second quarter so keep an eye out for the exciting rookie.

Aspettate fino alla prossima volta... Till next time, Ciao!

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