Training camp has arrived, with multiple teams around the league welcoming their players back onto the practice field. The first preseason game isn't too far off, but before then there's a lot for teams to sort out in training camp. One of the biggest stories revolves around a player who really hasn't done much in the NFL: Cleveland Browns quarterback Johnny Manziel.
Josh McCown begins training camp as starter, but the door is still open for Johnny Manziel
Josh McCown is the starter for the Browns but Johnny Manziel will have his shot to compete, DeAngelo Williams is no stopgap in Pittsburgh and more from training camp on Monday.
Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports
Manziel is currently the No. 2 quarterback behind veteran Josh McCown, and that's how things opened up on Monday. Head coach Mike Pettine didn't commit to McCown having a firm hold on the job, however, saying that he can't guarantee McCown will be the starter against the New York Jets in Week 1, according to Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com.
Pettine said that, if the Browns were to play this weekend, McCown would start, but that he’s “not going to commit beyond that.” The fact that the door is open for Manziel to compete is a testament to how much of a shot the Browns want to give him, despite his struggles on the field as a rookie and his stint in rehab this offseason.
Pettine also talked about wide receiver Terrelle Pryor, who converted from quarterback to wide receiver this offseason. He said that Pryor has all the athletic tools to make it work, and could even play some tight end as the line between a tight end and a receiver has "really blurred" in recent years. He didn't rule out Pryor playing under center again:
#Browns Pettine said he won't eliminate Terrelle Pryor as a QB down the road "but I want him to focus 1,000 percent on receiver.''
— Mary Kay Cabot (@MaryKayCabot) July 27, 2015 Some other news and notes from training camp Monday:
Williams is no stopgap
The Pittsburgh Steelers will be without running back Le'Veon Bell for three games due to a suspension, and in the interim DeAngelo Williams is expected to start. Williams is a veteran running back who was among the best in the league at one point, but he's struggled to stay healthy and on the field. Many have called him a stopgap solution for the time Bell is away, but Williams is adamant that's not the case.
"We get tired in this game, so I'm quite sure Le'Veon, when he gets back is not going to play the entire game for the rest of the season," Williams said, via Jacob Klinger of PennLive.com. Williams said he's not just ready to carry the load for three games, he's "ready to carry the load for 16 games and then playoffs and then the Super Bowl."
The 32-year-old Williams played in just six games for the Carolina Panthers last season, putting up 219 yards on 62 carries.
Steelers defense out to a good start
Switching to the other side of the ball, the Steelers defense has been a big success in training camp so far. Cortez Allen managed to snare an interception during red zone drills, according to Jeremy Fowler of ESPN. Rookie Doran Grant then followed that up with an interception of his own, to which Mike Tomlin addressed the defense, saying "We feastin' over here," per Fowler.
So that means Pittsburgh’s offense is terrible, right? No, not necessarily. As noted by Stephen White in the latest Onside Kick Family Hour podcast, you typically want to see defenses performing well at the start of camp. If an offense hits the ground running and dominates the defense, that’s not a good sign for the defense. Offenses are supposed to take a little longer to get going.
Bridgewater can be a top quarterback, Floyd gets the message
Minnesota Vikings offensive coordinator Norv Turner can count Troy Aikman, Drew Brees and Philip Rivers among the quarterbacks he's tutored over the years, and he's pretty high on Teddy Bridgewater. Turner said at the start of training camp that Bridgewater has all the tools to be a "top-flight quarterback," according to Ben Goessling of ESPN.
Turner talked up Bridgewater’s vision, discipline, and understanding of the game and Minnesota’s playbook. Bridgewater completed 64.4 percent of his passes for 2,919 yards, 14 touchdowns and 12 interceptions as a rookie.
On defense, Sharrif Floyd is looking to break out. In February, head coach Mike Zimmer kind of called Floyd out, saying that at some point he has has to understand that “the NFL is a big man’s game,” when talking about Floyd’s durability. On Monday, Floyd said that he agrees with Zimmer, pretty emphatically:
Sharrif Floyd, on Zimmer saying in Feb. he needs to realize NFL is 'big man's game': 'I agree. No room for pussies, if you can write that'
— Andrew Krammer (@Andrew_Krammer) July 27, 2015 Well, he tweeted it, anyway.
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