FazzNoth Posted March 7, 2022 Posted March 7, 2022 The NFL combine is complete for this year with an uncertainty on whether it will return to Indianapolis or not. Long its home, the NFL is looking to branch out the event similar to what they did with the NFL draft a few years ago. This year’s combine was rife with problems for basically everyone involved but that had nothing to do with the city that was hosting it. As a credentialed media member at the combine, there is a unique opportunity to keep up with some of the conversations that are happening behind closed doors. The after-hours events, starting around 11 PM now due to primetime drills made for television, gives a chance for coaches, scouts, front office and media to interact with each other. We covered ESPN’s rumor notebook yesterday. Today gives me a chance to share with you things I heard while at the event: Jared Mueller Mon, March 7, 2022, 2:33 PM·7 min read The NFL combine is complete for this year with an uncertainty on whether it will return to Indianapolis or not. Long its home, the NFL is looking to branch out the event similar to what they did with the NFL draft a few years ago. This year’s combine was rife with problems for basically everyone involved but that had nothing to do with the city that was hosting it. As a credentialed media member at the combine, there is a unique opportunity to keep up with some of the conversations that are happening behind closed doors. The after-hours events, starting around 11 PM now due to primetime drills made for television, gives a chance for coaches, scouts, front office and media to interact with each other. We covered ESPN’s rumor notebook yesterday. Today gives me a chance to share with you things I heard while at the event: Aggressive in Free Agency Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports As has been true in his first two seasons running the Browns, GM Andrew Berry is once again expected to be aggressive this offseason in free agency. That may mean going hard after a few key players to give the team options in free agency or it could mean making a very strong offer to a big-time free agent that they want. Berry has made significant overtures to a variety of agents about players in the upcoming free-agent class. The Browns may have to overpay for offensive players, coming off a bad season on that side of the ball, but have defenders that are quite interested in playing beside Myles Garrett and for Joe Woods. Clearing Space Scott Galvin-USA TODAY Sports A surprising amount of uncertainty surrounding which players Cleveland could let go of but, to go along with the aggressiveness, Berry is expected to free up significant cap space this offseason through releases, trades or restructures. The Browns see the future of the cap as continually on the rise but want cap space this year to make moves for 2022 with the future years slightly less important at this time. We covered a number of players who could be released or traded to clear space. Jarvis Landry is the obvious name. There are options with Landry while J.C. Tretter, Case Keenum and even Austin Hooper could be released depending on Berry’s desire. David Njoku The expectation around the league is that Cleveland will be bringing back Njoku one way or another. The price for the Browns tight end is quite high around the league as he is seen as explosive and developing well over time. If the team can’t get a long-term deal done, use of the franchise tag is expected. Box score scouting doesn’t do Njoku justice. His target share is often low but he makes the most of them. The drops narrative from his first two years in the league should be gone and his blocking has greatly improved. At this moment, Njoku is Cleveland’s most explosive passing game threat along with Kareem Hunt. Trades More Info: https://sports.yahoo.com/nfl-combine-browns-news-rumors-133359284.html
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