BEREA — Rookie Austin Barber’s recent transition to right guard has gone so well, coach Todd Monken wants to see more before he finalizes the starting lineup for the Sept. 13 opener in Jacksonville. Veteran Teven Jenkins has been the presumptive starter for weeks.
“I love our depth there,” Monken said Saturday before practice. “Again, I think Teven has the advantage, obviously, as the veteran player, but we still have this week, we still have today and a few practices to really finalize. I’d give Teven the lean, but I don’t think it’s done yet.”
Carson Schwesinger back practicing after watching, learning while he waited for weeks
Barber (6-foot-7, 320 pounds) was drafted in the third round out of the University of Florida. He spent his life as a tackle, but the coaches moved him two weeks ago to get a look at him inside.
“What a great job he’s done playing, starting at tackle, then going to guard,” Monken said. “He’s only going to continue to get better, so I’ve been very pleased with him. He takes coaching.
“There was a screen that we ran during the game that, the week before, when it got caught, he was a little bit casual down the field, not accelerating his feet. And you saw it in the game the other night he accelerated and ran through the defender and did a great job. He certainly takes coaching from the meeting room, from his past experiences, to the field.”
Monken wasn’t ready to say if Barber looks better at guard than tackle. Regardless he’ll provide versatility.
“I would just say we were pleasantly surprised once we moved him there that he didn’t look out of place,” Monken said. “Certainly looked very capable.”
Predicting the initial 53-man roster
If Barber were to win the job at right guard, that would mean two rookies on the starting line. Left tackle Spencer Fano was the No. 9 pick.
“It’s really just trying to put the best five out there,” Monken said. “At some point you’re like: ‘Well, would it be ideal to have 11 rookies starting? Of course not.’ But ultimately our job is to put the best 11 out there, whether it’s a rookie or a vet. If that turns out to be Austin, then great. If it’s Teven, then great.”
Veteran right tackle Tytus Howard knows what it’s like to move across the line and has been impressed with Barber.
“He can play all four positions, everything but center,” he said. “So him being able to get all that repetition early on in his career is going to help him out a lot. It’s going to slow the game down for him, I know for sure because I’ve done that. And being able to know what to do at every single position when you get out there, you’re going to be able to play faster and it’s going to only get him better technically, which I seen this past week at right guard, he played really well and for the past two weeks. Austin’s got a bright future ahead of him whether it’s at guard or tackle.”
WHO’LL BE NO. 3?
NFL rosters must be cut to the regular-season limit of 53 by Sunday at 6 p.m., and one of the key decisions facing the Browns is what to do at the bottom of the quarterback depth chart.
Deshaun Watson and Shedeur Sanders are locked into the top two spots. The question is whether to keep Dillon Gabriel and rookie Taylen Green, or pick one.
“We don’t want to lose any good players that have a future with the Browns, so we’ve still got some discussions to have,” Monken said. “But I was very impressed with both Dillon and Taylen, both did it differently. Dillon’s at least played. He’s played last year, he’s gotten more reps than Taylen, so he looked like it, and he obviously operated very well.
“Taylen did the things we thought he would do, which was make some plays with his feet, and there were no issues in terms of the operation.”
FAMILIAR FEEL
Defensive end Derek Barnett, who was signed last Sunday, entered the NFL in 2017 with the Eagles and defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz. The Browns’ system was installed by Schwartz in 2023 and is the foundation for what new coordinator Mike Rutenberg will run this year.
“Upfront it’s a lot of same as,” Barnett said. “It’s just some different lingo things, so just different language. But for the most part it’s some similarities.”
Barnett, 30, spent the last three years with the Texans and had five sacks in each of the last two seasons. He had to wait until well into camp before he landed with a team this season.
“Yeah, it was a little different this year, but I was just trying to practice patience and I knew eventually something would come about,” he said.
SEND ’EM OFF
Howard has a tradition in the days before the roster is cut to 53.
“What I try to do every year is, with days like this coming up, I try to get the guys together, have a big dinner,” he said. “Kind of like a last hurrah, because the group’s not going to be the same as it was all camp. So being able to get that relationship with guys off the field is a big key.”
EXTRA POINTS
Monken declined to comment when asked if he expected rookie tight end Joe Royer to play this season. Royer, a fifth-round pick, missed training camp and remains absent due to a personal reason.
** Defensive end Jared Verse, receiver Isaiah Bond (concussion), defensive tackles Kalia Davis, Sam Kamara, Travis Bell and Elijah Chatman (quad) and cornerbacks Myles Bryant and Michael Coats Jr. (ankle) didn’t practice. Verse, Bryant and Kamara watched from the sideline.
** After a day off Sunday, the Browns will practice next week before getting the weekend off heading into Week 1.
“Early in the week will be a little bit more of us versus us,” Monken said. “As we get to the middle and back end of the week, there’ll be more and more Jacksonville. By the last day, by Thursday, it’ll be all Jacksonville.”
