00:00He covers the Browns for the Chronicle Telegram, brownzone.com,
00:03where you can read all of his work.
00:04He's Mr. Scott Petrack.
00:06Scott, good Monday to you, sir.
00:09Hi, fellas. What's going on?
00:12LeBron's always wanted to play football.
00:13You think the Browns are in?
00:16They could probably use another tight end to compliment Harold Fenn Jr.
00:20I would think so.
00:22I would think that's a possibility.
00:25So what do you do to prepare for the start of training camp?
00:30You hydrate? What do you do?
00:32Yeah, I try to have as much fun as possible
00:35because I can't count on that happening once training camp starts.
00:38And then it's all thinking about what I have to write the next couple of weeks
00:43as an intro to training camp, battles to watch, guys to watch, storylines,
00:49all that kind of stuff.
00:50And then what we're going to focus on, besides quarterback,
00:54when we get out to that first practice in a couple of weeks.
00:58So give me, as you talk about the focus,
01:01and I was trying to think of other storylines going,
01:03the offensive line to me I've been talking about for a while,
01:06to me is intriguing.
01:08I guess it's probably the most optimistic thing I'll say
01:11because you got five new guys on the offensive line.
01:14What is a realistic expectation for this offensive line
01:18that we're about to see?
01:20And, I mean, do you feel better?
01:23I know I feel healthier about the guys they have on the line.
01:26I don't know that I feel better about five new guys playing offensive line.
01:30Yeah, it's interesting.
01:32I feel better because of the health.
01:35So I think those are intermingled.
01:38You know, I don't know if –
01:39I would doubt that Zion Johnson is better than Joe Batonio,
01:43especially Joe Batonio in his prime.
01:45And I thought Batonio still played at a high level last year.
01:49But, you know, Jack Conklin couldn't get on the field last year.
01:52So, right, as Howard, should be an upgrade over there.
01:56We still have to see how center shakes out.
01:58I thought Ethan Posty was pretty good.
02:00So I don't know if that guy will be better.
02:03You know, I mean, if it's Elton Jenkins, then maybe, then probably.
02:06But is Elton Jenkins going to play right guard?
02:09You know, and Wyatt Teller, I thought, was up and down last year,
02:12and then he got hurt, and then left tackle, you know,
02:15was a mess with injuries and everything.
02:17So I assume, and he better be, Spencer Fano, Fano better be better at left tackle.
02:22So I think as a unit, I have optimism that they will stay healthier.
02:28I think they will be better.
02:30I like the infusion of youth with Fano,
02:34and maybe it's Parker Brailsford at center.
02:37We still have to see that.
02:38Obviously, Zion Johnson is younger at left guard than Joel was.
02:42So I do think there's reason to think this line will be better.
02:47To me, they replaced unhealthy guys with healthy guys.
02:51And whether the healthy guys have better skill sets than the guys who weren't healthy,
02:57I don't think so.
02:58But it doesn't matter if your skill set's better if you're not on the field.
03:02And that's the end of the situation.
03:05Yeah, I agree.
03:06And I think it's individual, right?
03:08Like, Fano should be better than whoever was playing left tackle a year ago.
03:12So, you know, Jack Conklin in his prime was really good.
03:15He's probably better than Titus Howard.
03:17But he hasn't been in his prime in a while, and he was hurt.
03:19So I do think the age and injuries are the biggest factors.
03:24Because, you know, going into last year, those are the questions.
03:27If not, it would have been a real solid line.
03:29But all that stuff caught up to it.
03:32What did you think of George Warhop coming back to coach these guys?
03:35Because I kind of feel like we've had really strong offensive line coaching.
03:39And then maybe it tailed off a little, and now all of a sudden you're here again.
03:44I think that's exactly right.
03:46You know, I mean, Bill Callahan obviously was missed for those last couple of years.
03:49And I thought Mike Bloomgren was fine.
03:51Last year did a good job.
03:53He's a respected guy.
03:54And in the last few years, really, the guys have had a really tough hand dealt to them.
03:59But George Warhop, you know, when Joe Thomas says he's the favorite line coach he's ever had,
04:04I mean, that carries so much weight.
04:05So, you know, I remember Warhop a little bit from the first time he was here.
04:12He's been around for a long, long time.
04:14I think that was a huge hire for Todd Munkin.
04:17And I think it will reap benefits.
04:21Is Andrew Barry, is he golden?
04:25Is he locked in here?
04:27You know, last year's draft has played out well.
04:30The draft that was just taking place,
04:34he's had great reviews for, even though nobody's played a game yet.
04:38It just, it's weird to me that such a difference was made between the status of Kevin Stefanski
04:45and Andrew Barry after they were both responsible for what's happened the last couple of years.
04:50And it makes me think that Andrew's locked in here.
04:53Yeah, I mean, how many times have we talked about it?
04:56At the time, I didn't, you know, I thought they should have been connected.
04:59Obviously, that hasn't felt differently.
05:02It's a great question.
05:03I get that a lot when I'm out and about, about Andrew Barry.
05:08Things change so quickly in this league.
05:10And, you know, if they're 2-15 this year, you know, then anything's on the table, I think.
05:17And I think it's hard to say, yeah, there's any certainties.
05:21You know, and if Todd Munkin struggles, and that was an Andrew Barry hire, right?
05:25So, I don't, I'm not willing to say that he's going to be here the next decade.
05:30But I know the Hasms really like him, and for good reason.
05:34He's a smart guy.
05:35He represents the organization really well.
05:38I think they like having him as kind of the face of the organization.
05:42He's still young.
05:43I think he has gotten better.
05:45I think there's reason to believe he will continue to get better.
05:47We've seen that he's aggressive in trades.
05:51And I think that's the way you have to operate in today's sports world, you know, especially the NFL.
05:57So, you know, I would say that Andrew Barry is really liked inside the organization.
06:02That means that he's probably going to be here for a long time.
06:05And as long as he keeps drafting well, and we know what last year was, and you talked about this
06:10year, looks like it's going to be good, then that's huge.
06:13And then the next question is, can you figure out the quarterback?
06:16Because until that happens, at some point, it's forget about the draft picks, forget about the rest of the roster.
06:22It's can you win because you have the quarterback?
06:24And he's been yet to solve it.
06:27So, let me ask the same question, but with Todd Munkin instead.
06:32And, like, how do you think Todd Munkin's looking at this quarterback situation based on what we've seen so far
06:39with minicamp and OTAs?
06:41And then what's it going to look like going into camp?
06:45Yeah, I mean, you know, as far as Todd Golden, I mean, it's his first year.
06:51We've seen coaches get fired after one year.
06:53So, again, nothing's off the table.
06:55I know they like Todd.
06:57It's a five-year contract, right?
06:59So, that doesn't lead you to think that it's a short-term solution with him.
07:04They're confident that he's going to help fix the offense, and that includes quarterback.
07:08And that was where the team was really let down in the last two years.
07:12If the offense had been better, the results would have been better.
07:15The win-loss record would have been better.
07:16So, that's the hope for Todd Munkin.
07:19As far as the quarterbacks, you know, I keep coming back to there's two things.
07:23One, he's going to want to play the guy that gives him the best chance to win.
07:26If he's 60 years old, head coach for the first time, is there a comfort level with it being
07:31Deshaun Watson, given his, you know, experience compared to Shadur Sanders?
07:36Yeah, I think that is a factor in this competition.
07:41I personally keep going to the fact that go with the younger guy, go with the guy who's
07:45under contract.
07:46Watson hasn't stayed healthy.
07:48All the, you know, all the things we've talked about a billion times.
07:51But, you know, if it all comes down to who gives you the better chance, if Todd Munkin,
07:55to win week one, maybe it's that simple.
07:58And maybe it should be that simple.
08:00And, you know, I could see how that could end up being Watson over Sanders.
08:06Scott Petrack joining us, ChronicleTelegram, BrownZone.com.
08:09You know, we've been kicking around this depth chart, the roster for the Browns since the
08:15draft and everything else.
08:16And, you know, we all can't wait to see it on the field.
08:19It looks like everything except quarterback on the offense is penciled in as you know
08:25who your starter is going to be, you know, with young guys and on the offensive line,
08:29maybe just juggling exactly where somebody is going to play.
08:33But in Baltimore, Todd Munkin had two really good tight ends in Mark Andrews and Isaiah
08:39Likely.
08:40Here, you mentioned right off the bat, Harold Fannin.
08:44I wonder how much he's going to use tight end here.
08:47And are they comfortable with Jack Stoll, Joe Royer, Blake Whitehart as the backups?
08:54Yeah, I think there's going to be a lot of tight ends.
08:57You know, I mean, they went after Charlie Kohler in the offseason.
08:59He wound up signing a huge deal for a guy that, you know, had barely had any catches,
09:03but Todd Munkin knew him from Baltimore.
09:05So I think there is a desire to use two tight ends.
09:09You see that more and more across the league.
09:12Kevin Stefanski did a ton of that.
09:14So I think he will.
09:15Plus, you know, Fannin was proud of the way he blocked last year because that was a question
09:19mark for him coming out of Bowling Green.
09:21But he's not a true in-line blocker.
09:24So I think to use Fannin to the best of his capabilities, it means having another guy out
09:30there that's more concentrated on blocking.
09:33So, you know, I liked what Blake Whitehart showed last year.
09:36There were a couple plays that really stood out to me.
09:38He had some moments, didn't he?
09:39Yeah, he did.
09:40And I tell you what, I saw him a lot in the OTAs and minicamp.
09:45He showed up a lot.
09:46And, you know, part of that was because Fannin wasn't practicing with an injury.
09:50But I think Whitehart has a chance to be a contributor to this team.
09:54And then you talk about the rookies.
09:56And, you know, is one of those rookies going to line up as a fullback a little bit?
10:00You know, I could see that.
10:02But I think they're okay.
10:03They have some depth at that position.
10:05But I have little doubt that we're going to see a lot of two tight end formations.
10:11Just as far as going into camp then, in years past we've seen Camp Cupcake and we've seen camps that
10:18are brutal.
10:19I would think that because the roster is so young for the most part, that this is not going to
10:25be one of the easier camps in the NFL.
10:27True or false?
10:28No, I think that's 100% true, Andy.
10:30And it's the youth of the roster is one of the things.
10:34I think when you have a new coach, I mean, how many times have you heard that it's easier to
10:38back off than to step on the gas?
10:42Yeah.
10:42So I don't think you can come in and, okay, we're going to take it easy.
10:45And then you look around and go, hey, I don't like how these guys are prepared.
10:49And then say, okay, we're going to practice for two and a half hours today.
10:52That just doesn't go over well.
10:53So I think you've got to come out of the gate kind of jamming.
10:56And if you look at the training camp schedule, I mean, I don't know if it's out there for everybody,
11:01but the media schedule, I think there's practice 11 of the first 12 days.
11:07So that sets a pretty significant tone because I do not remember Kevin Stefanski having that kind of, I don't
11:16know,
11:16workload in the first two weeks of camp.
11:18Sure.
11:18All right, buddy, hit him straight.
11:20You've got another 10 days.
11:24Oh, must have hit him straight already.
11:27Scott already hit him straight.
11:28He went to play golf.
11:29Oh, there he is.
11:30Thanks, bud.
11:31Appreciate your time.
11:31Later, bud.
11:32Thanks, guys.
11:33Scott Pentrick.
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