Building the Browns Practice Squad

Finding the right mix of players to build your practice squad around isn't easy. Fortunately for the Browns, they have a nice group of young and experienced players to form the foundation.

As cuts from across the league begin to pour in, it is time to construct a practice squad for the Cleveland Browns. All cuts will be finalized by tomorrow but so far the Browns have cut their roster from 90 down to 72 players at this moment.

This final round of cuts is where a majority of the practice squad will come from. I will start by saying that I think there will be one or two veterans on the team who will be cut initially but signed back to the 53-man once certain players are placed on injured reserve. I won't list them here in the event you are reading this after hearing they were cut. Both Michael Dunn and Maurice Hurst would fit in this category for me.

I also have both Mohamoud Diabate and Ronnie Hickman making the team, so they won't be options in this scenario.Teams will have until noon on Wednesday to make claims on players who were waived. The practice squad can consist of 16 players with no more than 6 veterans. 

I will start with the young players that I believe the Browns are hoping won't get claimed by another team.

WR- Jaelon Darden

WR- Austin Watkins Jr.

DE- Sam Kamara

DT- Tommy Togiai

S- D'Anthony Bell

LB- Charlie Thomas

CB- Caleb Biggers

S- Tanner McCallister

DE- Lonnie Phelps

TE- Zaire Mitchell-Paden

That brings us to ten guys. Now let's look at the potential veterans they may like to sign to the practice squad.

OG- Wes Martin

DT- Trysten Hill

LB- Matthew Adams

This puts us now at thirteen players. Finally, we should take a look at the composition of the practice squad and make sure we have depth at specific positions across the roster. In my opinion we need to add one player each at the following positions.

Quarterback

This will need to come from outside of the organization as I think they have seen enough of Kellen Mond. While he was serviceable in the preseason, I think he is pretty limited in the NFL. Rather than naming a specific player, I will instead list some possible options that could be available.

QB- Malik Cunningham, Patriots

QB-E.J. Perry, Texans

QB- Max Duggan

Offensive Tackle

After trading Tyrone Wheatley to the Patriots, we need a tackle to develop on the practice squad who could play in a pinch on a weeks notice. 

OT- Obinna Eze 

OT- Yodney Cajuste

OT- Alex Leatherwood

Running Back

It wouldn't surprise me if Demetric Felton or Hassan Hall were added to this spot but I think they could upgrade.

RB- Zonovan Knight

RB- Kylin Hill

This would give us a well rounded practice squad with players who could be called up on game day if needed balanced with players who may need time to develop.