Browns lose OL Hadnot with knee

By TONY GROSSI

BEREA — Position versatility have been the buzzwords about the offensive line at coach Eric Mangini’s first Browns training camp. What happened Thursday explains why.

Veteran lineman Rex Hadnot, who was capable of playing three positions, suffered what appeared to be a serious injury to his left knee on a pass play in team drills.

Hadnot, playing left guard with the second unit, was engaged in a block with defensive end Louis Leonard. Behind Hadnot, left tackle George Foster and linebacker David Veikune were dueling. It appeared Veikune tripped over Foster’s leg and fell on the back of Hadnot’s knee.

A hush descended on the field as teammates rushed to Hadnot’s side. After several moments of being tended to on the ground, Hadnot was helped to a golf cart and taken inside.

The Browns do not comment on injuries.

“I’ll speak for the whole offensive line,” guard Eric Steinbach said. “We’ve been working really hard and just trying to compete to get the best five out there. We keep improving every day, so when one guy goes down, we all get affected by it. It’s kind of a very sobering moment there.”

This was the first major injury of the summer season.

“Each day you go out there, it can happen to anyone,” Steinbach said. “It’s obviously a huge disappointment when it happens to anyone on this team, let alone someone at your own position because you’re down one guy and it hurts morale a little bit because we’re such a tight group. We just hope and pray it’s a minor injury.”

Hadnot started 15 games last year at right guard in his first season with the Browns. It was a revelation when he was moved to left guard in off-season voluntary workouts — the first indication that he would compete for the job that Steinbach had held for two seasons.

The move verified Mangini’s unspoken intention to beef up the offensive line.

Hadnot weighs 320 pounds. Steinbach was instructed to add weight and reported this year at 295. Mangini also added veteran linemen Floyd Womack (328 pounds), John St. Clair (320) and Foster (338) in free agency, and made center Alex Mack (311) his first draft pick.

The roster also includes Ryan Tucker (315), who has competed at right guard and tackle. So the numbers are there, it would seem, to absorb the loss of Hadnot.

But Hadnot brought even more versatility to the mix because he had started 19 games at center for Miami before he joined the Browns. That experience made him a valuable commodity because he could step in at center if needed during the season if the Browns elected not to keep Smith and veteran center Hank Fraley (300 pounds) on the final roster.