Cleveland Browns: Top 6 Position Battles at Camp

Jun 16, 2015; Berea, OH, USA; Cleveland Browns defensive lineman

(71) during minicamp at the Cleveland Browns practice facility. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports

3. How Dominant Can The Interior Defensive Line Become?

Competition: Phil Taylor, Randy Starks, Danny Shelton, Xavier Cooper

The strongest and deepest position on the team is the defensive line. There are at least two to three backups at every spot, and it only got better this off-season and in the draft. The Browns signed former Pro Bowler Randy Starks and drafted defensive linemen Danny Shelton and Xavier Cooper. Many thought the loss of Ahtyba Rubin would hurt the team, but they just reloaded and became even stronger.

This is definitely the toughest battle within training camp, Shelton has been unstoppable in drills and he continued his dominance in Thursday’s game taking on double and triple teams all night long–and still made plays. His speed and strength at his size is unreal.

Cooper also came into the game and had a big sack against Kirk Cousins, who had his way with the defense for most of the game. Taylor and Starks were the starters, but they were only in there for a few plays.

This is a make or break year for Taylor.

He has severely underachieved and has been injury-plagued the last three years. His only good season was his rookie year where he had 37 tackles and four sacks. He can never consistently get out of double teams, and he gets pancaked on most plays. He has played defensive end for the last two years and was non-productive and slow. This is the last year of his contract and with Shelton already showing his worth, it’s going to be hard for Taylor to maintain his starting spot unless he’s platooned and there just might not be any room.

Result: Danny Shelton

I think it’s going to be impossible for the Browns to keep him off the field over Taylor. He is already showing dominance against opposing offensive lines and displaying awareness that is rare for a rookie defensive lineman. Taylor would likely platoon at both positions.

Next: Does Anybody Want To Run The Ball?