Armonty Bryant
Armonty Bryant's consistent dominance during training-camp practices and preseason games has had a definite impact on the thinking of the Cleveland Browns' coaching staff.
The second-year defensive end no longer is viewed as a pass-rush specialist whose appearances are limited to obvious throwing situations. Bryant has performed well enough to convince coach Mike Pettine, defensive coordinator Jim O'Neil, and the rest of the defensive staff that he merits being on the field earlier.
Although the Browns aren't necessarily ready to promote him to the starting lineup, they're at least considering making Bryant part of a "job share" with Desmond Bryant, who is recovering from wrist surgery.
The idea, Pettine said, would be to alternate them enough so that "they're both fresh on third down" and able to give maximum effort in rushing the quarterback, especially late in games.
"I think it's very difficult for a pass rusher to play every single snap," Pettine said. "If a guy is an elite pass rusher, I would rather work his reps backward to forwards. Work him on third down. Work him on second and long. That way, you're guaranteeing that you have guys that have fresh legs in the third quarter."
In three preseason games, Armonty Bryant, a seventh-round draft pick from East Central University (Ada, Oklahoma) in 2013, has been credited with a sack among his six tackles, including four solo hits.
As a rookie, he was seen mostly as a one-dimensional player, offering limited contribution to stopping the run. However, through offseason workouts, training camp, and the preseason, Bryant has demonstrated that he has developed into more of a complete end.
"He's gotten better," Pettine said. "I thought at first that could have been an issue for him, but he's gotten better with it.
"I think one of the things he does well is his initial quickness, get off. We can do some things schematically to help him, to kind of put him on the move, and not just having to anchor in and take on a double team – just kind of put him on the move and let him take advantage of his quickness."
ELSEWHERE AROUND THE NFL …
THERE HAS BEEN SOME FRUSTRATIONwithin the New York Giants over how slow the offense is grasping the scheme of new coordinator Ben McAdoo. McAdoo could be heard yelling at members of the offense in practice, according to the New York Daily News. "You want everything done precisely, so we're still, every day, we're trying to get better at that," quarterback Eli Manning was quoted as saying in the News. "We need to be corrected on some things and do things more efficiently, so we're getting there, we're making small steps, but we're probably not all the way where we need to be."
IS SEATTLE SEAHAWKS QUARTERBACK RUSSELL WILSONthe next … Brett Favre? At least one of his teammates, wide receiver Percy Harvin, thinks so. Harvin was Favre's teammate in Minnesota, and he sees a lot of similarities between the former Viking who won a Super Bowl with Green Bay and the current Seahawk who won a Super Bowl in February. "Just keeping the team calm no matter if it's third-and-one, second down, whether we're blowing a team out or whether we're tied in the NFC Championship," Harvin told reporters. "He's always got an even keel and for me, I look for that comfort in a quarterback and I know a lot of guys on the team look for it too. Me and (Seahawks offensive coordinator Darrell) Bevell talk all the time because we played with Brett (Bevell was Favre's offensive coordinator in Minnesota), we talk all the time about their similarities." >>Be sure to tune in Monday through Friday, 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. ET, for "Cleveland Browns Daily, Driven by Liberty Ford" on ESPN 850 WKNR or catch the live stream right here on ClevelandBrowns.com. We take your questions at 216-578-0850 and via Twitter @Browns_Daily.
