It's easy to write off NFL practices at this time of year. It's only June, after all, and OTA practices aren't even mandatory. And granted, there's a lot of "noise" out there at this time of year. But that doesn't mean there aren't any serious takeaways you can glean from OTAs. And the Cleveland Browns have let slip one of these big updates.
Monday's practice wasn't open to the media, but they did post a highlight of Kenny Pickett hitting Jerry Jeudy. That throw-and-catch sequence doesn't mean much. It's just a hype video. But if you watch closely, the highlight also provides a huge update on one Browns rookie.
Pickett to Jeudy in OTAs today (not open to media but will be tomorrow). If you slow it down, you can also see Ronnie Hickman back at practice and rookie LB Carson Schwesinger working with what looks like the first-team defense. pic.twitter.com/Ooox8qaUFC
— Daniel Oyefusi (@DanielOyefusi) June 3, 2025
Rookie Carson Schwesinger Already Emerging as Browns Starter
The highlight appears to have Pickett and Jeudy working against the first-team defense, and on the field with that unit is rookie linebacker Carson Schwesinger. That suggests he's already landed himself in the starting lineup.
"It's only June," sure, but there's plenty of reason to believe this is significant. If anything, NFL teams lean away from getting rookies in the starting lineup early. Coaches often go through OTAs and even open training camps with veterans in their starting roles even if the expectation is that a rookie will unseat them. So if Schwesinger were not running with the ones it would be too early to panic. But having him in the lineup now is definitely noteworthy.
And of course, his emergence as a starter would be crucial as the Browns look to continue moving forward without injured star Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah.
Who Else Could Replace Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah?
JOK has already been ruled out for 2025 with his neck injury, so the Browns need a starter to play alongside Jordan Hicks (who was on the field for 80% of the team's defensive snaps when healthy in 2024). The list of options isn't exactly an ugly one either, making Schwesinger's emergence all the more impressive. The three top options are pretty clearly established, with one rookie, one incumbent and one free-agent addition:
- Carson Schwesinger
- Mohamoud Diabate
- Jerome Baker
The depth chart behind them is deep, but doesn't have any real threats to start:
- Winston Reid
- Devin Bush
- Nathaniel Watson
- Easton Mascarenas-Arnold
The Case for Diabate
Diabate started 11 games for the Browns in 2024, and he may have been the presumed favorite to start alongside Hicks. He racked up 70 tackles and played over 80% of the defensive snaps in six of his starts. But it's also not hard to see why the team was looking to add linebacker help.
He received an overall grade of only 51.9 from PFF, which ranked 75th among 84 graded linebackers on the year. For context, Hicks graded out 11th of 84 at 77.4. He was an undrafted free agent in 2023, so while it's great that he managed to earn a starting job, he's also not someone who necessarily has the potential to improve significantly on that weak 2024 season. Enter Jerome Baker.
The Case for Baker
A 2018 third-round pick, Jerome Baker bounced around between two teams last season and struggled to make an impact with either. The Browns, accordingly, were able to sign him on a low-risk $1.3 million deal for just one year.
He graded out ahead of Diabate last year (61.0), and as recently as 2022 PFF had him as a top-20 linebacker in the NFL (74.6 grade, #17/81). So with a cheap contract, Baker comes in as a low-risk option with some upside. But that deal also doesn't scream confidence in him as a starter.
What is Schwesinger's Upside in Cleveland?
So now we have Schwesinger, who the Browns selected with the first pick in the second round (No. 33 overall) in the 2025 NFL Draft. That has them already investing significantly more in Schwesinger than they have in either Diabate or Baker. And there's a good chance that investment pays off.
Schwesinger was a first-team All-American in his 2024 senior season at UCLA, and he was the No. 32 player on Mel Kiper's pre-draft big board. He wasn't technically a first-round pick, but he was right on the fringe. His skill-set also offers plenty of upside too. Just check out some highlights from his NFL.com scouting report:
- Body control and agility in short spaces is first class.
- Plays fast and sees run-lane development like a running back.
- Rare instincts for maneuvering inside and avoiding blocks.
Schwesinger is a complete natural in defending the run, and he has the potential to be an absolute tackling machine. Remind you of a certain injured linebacker who the Browns are looking to replace for 2025?
With the full buy-in of the coaching staff and the ability to have starters push him in practice already, Schwesinger is in the perfect spot to realize that upside and prove why he's getting first-team reps this early.