Undrafted Browns rookies Ronnie Hickman, Mohamoud Diabate look to 'just keep balling'

BEREA — The scenario wasn't too much different for either Ronnie Hickman or Mohamoud Diabate. Not on Tuesday, it wasn't.

Both Browns rookies woke up that morning with the same understanding. There was a phone call they would be receiving at some point, a call that could dramatically change their lives.

"Anxious to say the least, just because you're going to get a call but you're not sure what the answer going to be," Hickman, the former Ohio State safety, said Wednesday. "But I felt like I did what I could and it was no longer my decision at that time. So it was out of my control."

So Hickman just stayed in bed, awaiting the sound of the phone ringing. It wasn't much different in another hotel room, where Diabate could do nothing but ponder what he would hear when he answered.

Turns out, both had nothing to worry about. When the call came from Browns general manager Andrew Berry, it brought with it news both rookies had dreamed about hearing.

Hickman and Diabate had gone from undrafted to on the Browns' initial 53-man roster. They were among nine rookies kept during Tuesday's final cuts, and the only two who weren't drafted.

"We didn't talk too much about it," Diabate, the former Florida and Utah linebacker, said of conversations with Hickman about making the team as undrafted rookies. "We just kept telling each other, 'Hey, keep doing what you're doing.' He telling me the same thing: 'Hey, let's just keep balling, keep focusing on what we're doing, keep getting better and earning the trust of the staff and teammates around.'"

That journey started not long after both had seen their dreams of being drafted dashed in late April. Despite playing at high-profile college programs, neither was one of the 259 players selected in the NFL Draft.

What both did have, though, was a chance to pick their landing spots. Both, in a reasonably quick fashion that weekend, picked the Browns.

"Specifically to both, I think we were really excited about getting both," assistant general manager/vice president of player personnel Glenn Cook said Wednesday. "It's the wild, wild West post-draft, so I think you got to be aggressive with anybody that you're interested in. Those two, we definitely put our gas down on the pedal to acquire them."

Once acquired, though, the real work started. Hickman found himself walking into a safeties group that, by the middle of May, had three spots definitively locked up by Juan Thornhill, Rodney McLeod — himself a one-time undrafted free agent coming out of college — and Grant Delpit.

The pathway was more congested for Diabate simply because of the number of linebackers around. The Browns had Anthony Walker Jr. and Sione Takitaki both working back from season-ending injuries from the previous year, but also Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, Matthew Adams, Tony Fields II and Jordan Kunaszyk.

The hurdles in front of both were irrelevant to them, they said. The only way they could make their mark was by drawing attention to themselves by only one way.

"Just keep doing what you're doing," Diabate said. "Worry about what's coming the next day, worrying about getting better each and every single day. Not worrying about what's going on, just worrying about improving. So as long as I keep my mindset on improving every day and becoming a better football player, a better teammate, being better at every aspect of the game, everything will be all right."

Both players were more than all right during the preseason, which is how they earned their spots on the initial 53. Hickman had three interceptions, which was tied for the most in the NFL during the preseason.

Diabate, meanwhile, was also a playmaker, but in a different way. His performance in the third preseason game at the Philadelphia Eagles was a memorable one thanks to his tackle for a safety early, as well as a forced fumble that led to a field goal late in the first half.

"We saw the talent, we saw the potential and then they came here and they performed," Cook said. "So I think it started with them and just the coaching staff doing a great job of getting those guys ramped up, putting them in position to make plays, and then ultimately they did it."

For now. That's the message that both Hickman and Diabate are preaching after their second day as full-fledged NFL players on actual 53-man roster.

Which means it's time to take a good, deep breath, right?

"Nah, man, the rent's due every day, for real," Hickman said. "So it's a small sigh, but the rent's due every day around here in this profession. You gotta earn it every day."

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: Ronnie Hickman, Mohamoud Diabate not content just making Browns roster