Browns prep for lockout end

Akron Beacon Journal

The NFL’s lockout has robbed the new Browns coaches of opportunities to become familiar with their players and install their schemes.

Compensating for lost minicamps and offseason workouts will be a daunting mission. But on a positive note, the lockout has also given the coaching staff ample time to help the front office determine whom to target in free agency.

This offseason, the assistants were assigned to study potential free agents, write reports about them and discuss their evaluations with General Manager Tom Heckert, President Mike Holmgren and coach Pat Shurmur. Their homework has been completed for some time, but their findings have remained closely guarded during the wait for labor peace.

More than four months after the lockout began, they are now seemingly on the brink of being rewarded for their patience.

Barring the dreaded false-alarm factor, a new collective bargaining agreement and the start of free agency appear to be on the horizon. Reports of encouraging signs on the labor front have sparked hope that the lockout could finally end next week.

Although Heckert has said the Browns won’t be “gung-ho in free agency,” he’ll probably pull some all-nighters once the work stoppage concludes and transactions are allowed. The Browns aided their switch to a 4-3 defense and a West Coast offense in April’s draft, but they still have plenty of holes to plug and positions deprived of depth.

Adding a defensive end to start opposite rookie second-round pick Jabaal Sheard should be a top priority. Because most offenses usually place a tight end on the defense’s left side, the left end in a 4-3 system is typically known as a run stopper. His counterpart on the right side is usually more of a pass rusher.

If Sheard, 6-foot-2 and 254 pounds, can create pressure the way the Browns believe he can, he’ll probably be a better fit on the right side. The Browns know Marcus Benard, 6-2, 256 pounds, can rack up sacks, but they aren’t sure whether he can convert from a 3-4 linebacker and become an every-down 4-3 end.

Their solution on the left side could be re-signing Jayme Mitchell. The 6-6, 285-pound Mitchell didn’t appear in a game last season after the Browns acquired him in a trade with the Minnesota Vikings. Mitchell, though, is best suited for a four-man front, and Heckert has said he wants him back.

The Browns, however, have not given any indication that they think the same way about free-agent safety Abram Elam. Heckert has mentioned Mike Adams as a candidate to start alongside T.J. Ward, but he also suggested the Browns are interested in pursuing a safety in free agency. In other words, the eventual starter is probably not on the roster yet.

The secondary could use more help at cornerback, too, especially if Eric Wright doesn’t return. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that all players with expired contracts and four or more years of experience are expected to become unrestricted free agents when a new labor deal is reached unless they have the franchise player tag. If that scenario unfolds, Wright would be unrestricted despite receiving a restricted-free agent tender from the Browns in March.

Of course, not every item on the wish list will be completely crossed off. Those that are addressed, though, will represent a welcome return to business.