Adding seven fresh faces to their roster via the 2023 NFL draft, the Cleveland Browns attacked the board with value in their mind. From Tennessee wide receiver Cedric Tillman all the way to Ohio State center Luke Wypler, the Browns added even a handful of players who could find the field as rookies this season.
Here, we take a look at all seven names and project what their day-one role could be for the Browns as rookies.
WR Cedric Tillman
2023 role: Day 1 rotational contributor
Cedric Tillman will see the field in Week 1 unless he is injured. He may not command targets, but you better believe the Browns will utilize his 6-foot-3 frame in the redzone and give him looks at the X in some two and three-wide receiver sets.
The ball will fly around the field as the Browns look to get more explosive, and while he may not see more than two or three targets per game as a rookie, Tillman will be on the field consistently as a rookie. When you possess something that nobody else in the room does, size and the ability to win above the rim, there is space on the field for you.
DT Siaki Ika
2023 role: Day 1 rotational DT
Dalvin Tomlinson is the only solidified contributor on the defensive line as of now. At this point, there is reason to believe that Siaki Ika could be penciled in as a starter next to Tomlinson given the talent in the defensive tackle room. There are still some talented defensive tackles on the market, like Matt Ioannidis and Shelby Harris, but right now Ika is in line to see a bountiful amount of snaps.
A name like Maurice Hurst or Trysten Hill could emerge in training camp and steal a starting job. However, at this point, Ika looks like nothing less than a day one rotational player given the status of the current defensive tackle depth chart.
OT Dawand Jones
2023 role: Backup offensive tackle
Dawand Jones is more naturally gifted than current swing tackle veteran James Hudson. If right tackle Jack Conklin were to go down with another injury, there is a reason to believe Jones would step into the starting lineup over Hudson.
However, Jones is going to have to prove that he is a professional and can lock into an NFL system. There is also reason to wonder whether or not he can kick left if Jedrick Wills were to go down.
Either way, Jones is going to sit at the top of the depth chart on either side of the line. However, he is talented enough, even as a rookie, to jump Hudson on the depth chart.
DE Isaiah McGuire
2023 role: Week 1 rotational end
Looking at the depth chart at the defensive end position, McGuire is already penciled in as a rotational player in 2023. Myles Garrett and newly added Ogbo Okoronkwo are your starters, and it already seems that McGuire and second-year big body Alex Wright will be the rotational guys in the lineup.
Even if the Browns go out and add a veteran designated pass rusher like Melvin Ingram, Justin Houston, or Ben Banogu will not eat too significantly into his snap count. McGuire is talented, the Browns got great value in the fourth round, and the summation of those two things should equal early snaps for the Missouri product.
QB Dorian Thompson-Robinson
2023 role: Third-string QB, healthy scratch
Kellen Mond no longer has a roster spot. Look for Mond to get cut, and if he clears waivers land back on the practice squad with the Browns. Historically, however, the Browns have only activated two quarterbacks on game day, and that will not change in 2023.
Dorian Thompson-Robinson will make the team but do not expect him to be active in 2023 unless one of Deshaun Watson or Joshua Dobbs suffers an injury. Dobbs was given a fully guaranteed contract and will be the backup. Thompson-Robinson will be given a year to learn and get his feet wet before taking over as the backup quarterback in 2024.
CB Cameron Mitchell
2023 Role: Special Teamer, potential future nickel
Cameron Mitchell played nearly 400 snaps of special teams during his time at Northwestern. It is a safe bet that Mitchell will scratch and claw his way onto the field from day one as a contributor in the third phase of the game as he learns defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz’s scheme in Cleveland.
However, the tackling numbers and body of work that he put on the field at Northwestern would also indicate Mitchell is a player who can comfortably kick inside and play the nickel. And not only play the nickel but show comfort slinging into run fits on early downs when asked to as well.
He will not be the starter inside Week 1, but Mitchell has the opportunity to fight his way on the field through special teams.
C Luke Wypler
2023 Role: Backup Center
Luke Wypler is in a unique situation.
Both of the other centers on the roster outside of starter Ethan Pocic suffered season-ending injuries (and now Dawson Deaton is listed as a guard on the roster). With Nick Harris entering a contract year off of a significant lower-body injury, Wypler has the opportunity to be the day-one backup center behind Pocic despite being a sixth round selection.
And even with Pocic, a player who had five years of poor play before 2022 with the Browns, there is a chance his play could bottom out again. He also missed four games a season ago as well. If Pocic’s play bottoms out to the level he put on tape with the Seattle Seahawks, there is an out in his deal where the Browns can move on and eat just $6 million in dead money.
Wypler looks to be one snap away from the field this season and could find himself as the starter in 2024.
