Browns: 5 players the team never should have let go of

Carl Nassib

Despite being a good all-around defensive end, John Dorsey didn’t want another man’s holdovers. A rotational player with starting potential, Carl Nassib was a third-round pick out of Penn State and has played right in the line with expectations of a third-round pick. He has 131 career tackles, 19.5 sacks, 13 pass deflections, and three forced fumbles to his name. He’s not heading to Canton, but he’s played well against the run and the pass and at just 27-years-old as of press, still has a lot of football left ahead of him.

Nassib is an instant upgrade over Olivier Vernon, and at a far more affordable price. Unlike Vernon, Nassib isn’t known to be an injury-prone player, playing in at least 14 games in every season of his career. Tack that onto his versatility as a player, being able to lineup as a defensive end in a 4-3 or as an outside linebacker in a 3-4 and you can see that Nassib would have been a wonderful player in Joe Woods defense, which often utilizes standing defensive ends in nickel packages.

Having Nassib and Porter Gustin on the same team would also allow for more stunting and more rotations, relying less on the disappointing defensive tackles that have been Sheldon Richardson and Larry Ogunjobi. If Gustin can lineup inside, why not Nassib on occasion; especially on passing downs.