Newly acquired Cleveland Browns pass rusher Jared Verse was on the field for the Browns’ Wednesday OTA. He went through individual drills with the guys, but was held out of the full team action for obvious reasons.
During that time, he got to just observe what was going on. He got to take in the team, the intensity of practice, and the execution by both sides.
His takeaway from a day’s worth of observing? “This is not a losing team out there.”
One of the attributes that separates Verse from his peers is that he is very much a vocal leader. If there is one thing that he is definitely better than Myles Garrett at, it is absolutely that. Garrett was more of a watch what I do leader, and Verse is definitely more of a listen to me as a leader.
In his first opportunity in front of a microphone, he is already breathing faith and belief into his teammates. This is a guy who was in the NFC Championship game last year and on the roster of a Super Bowl contender.
Sure, he hasn’t seen what a losing team practices like, but he absolutely knows what a good one looks like. This isn’t a guarantee that the Browns are going to grab 13 wins next year, but what it is is an acknowledgement that there is skill here; they just have to hone it in.
A lot of that is going to come because of Verse’s ability to get after the passer and be a major player in the run game. Verse is a tackling machine, and when he gets to the contact point, he gets there with violence.
He is going to fit right in with the personality of this defense with guys like Carson Schwesinger, Mason Graham, Alex Write, Quincy Williams, Grant Delpit, and others.
Sure, what Verse saw today on the Browns practice field was a team and a defense that was up to the task. But what he also saw were the pieces that the Browns have and how close they are to building out a winner.
Cleveland is a couple more pieces away from maybe one day getting Verse back to the conference championship game, this time, with the Browns.
This article originally appeared on Browns Wire: Jared Verse’s day one first impression of the Browns is a strong one
Reporting by Anthony Moeglin, Browns Wire / Browns Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Anthony Moeglin, Browns Wire | USA TODAY Network
