Cleveland Browns 'not going to downplay' joint practices with Philadelphia Eagles

PHILADELPHIA — The question almost seemed to offend Ogbo Okoronkwo.

The Browns defensive end was asked after Friday's preseason game against the Washington Commanders about the upcoming joint practices with the Philadelphia Eagles. Specifically, he was asked if too much will be made, good or bad, about what happens during those two late-afternoon practices Monday and Tuesday.

"Too big of a deal?" Okoronknwo said. "Every day is an opportunity to get better, especially when the competition was just in the Super Bowl. So I'm definitely excited. I'm not going to downplay it and act like I'm not excited to play a team that was in the Super Bowl. That's our goal this year."

A year ago, it was the Eagles coming to Berea for two joint practices ahead of a backup-heavy exhibition game. Those two days seem to expertly foreshadow two things simultaneously.

One was that Philadelphia was really good. That was proven accurate when the Eagles came within a Kansas City Chiefs' fourth-quarter comeback of winning the Super Bowl.

Two was the issues that plagued the Browns throughout their 7-10 season. That included an inability across much of the defensive line to move the line of scrimmage.

So, when viewed with the benefit of hindsight, it's hard not to see how these two days may very well be the most important two days of the Browns' preseason.

"Most definitely because you really get to call everything, you get to see everything and you get to make those mistakes that in the games that you can't get back," quarterback Deshaun Watson said. "And having two great days going against their ones and that talent and their coaching staff is going to be great because we get to see something different and we also get to see their full package, they get to see our full package and what we need to work on. So it's great on great, and we looking forward to it."

It was on the first day of those joint practices a year ago that the settlement between Watson and the NFL on an 11-game suspension over the more than two dozen lawsuits alleging sexual assault and sexual misconduct against women in massage appointments was announced. That, essentially, brought an end to the uncertainty to the quarterback's on-field status, which was the storyline that hung over the Browns throughout training camp.

This year, the storyline for the Browns is about progress. While the Eagles aren't yet the conference heavyweight they're going to have to be to clear to achieve what they want — they'll see the Chiefs in the final dress-rehearsal preseason game on Aug. 26 — they're still one of the premier teams in the league.

Specifically, Philadelphia provides the perfect matchup to test the limits of the Browns' refurbished defensive line and their heavily invested offensive line. The Eagles may have the best pairing of offensive and defensive lines in the NFL.

There may have been some minor tweaking of those lines, specifically with the loss of defensive tackle Javon Hargrave, whom the Browns pursued strongly in free agency. However, the challenge hasn't changed a bit.

"Different, in that they have different faces, but pretty similar in the guys that they have," Browns offensive tackle Jedrick Wills Jr. told the Beacon Journal after Friday's preseason game. "They're always good with drafting somebody and getting a nice D tackle or D-end. They always keep their front seven loaded. So, I mean, same with us. We always keep our offensive line loaded, so it'd be really good to put it to the test."

The real test may come for the defense, which is where the Browns have worked hard to improve since last season ended. Okoronkwo and defensive tackle Dalvin Tomlinson were day-one free-agent signings, just ahead of safety Juan Thornhill.

They added defensive end Za'Darius Smith in May through a trade with the Minnesota Vikings, hoping to pair him up with All-Pro end Myles Garrett to form one of the league's most dangerous pass-rush tandems. Garrett hasn't dressed for either of the Browns' first two preseason games, and isn't likely to again for Thursday's game in Philadelphia.

Garrett will get a chance to play in the two joint practices, which he was limited in doing a year ago due to a family matter. That's going to make Monday and Tuesday the first — and maybe only — time in the preseason the Browns are able to run out as close to a full first unit against live competition.

"Very important, because, like we all said, it's the preseason," said Smith, who played 13 defensive snaps against Washington. "We had a chance to play tonight for a couple of snaps. With those joint practices, we'll get a chance to really get a lot of team reps, two-minute situations, one-on-one pass reps, to really see, like I said, where we at upfront as a D-line and as a football team."

Chris Easterling can be reached at ceasterling@thebeaconjournal.com. Read more about the Browns at www.beaconjournal.com/sports/browns. Follow him on Twitter at @ceasterlingABJ

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Browns 'not going to downplay' two practices with NFC champion Eagles