Browns Cut Former Starter After He Missed a Flight
New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick once said that “dependability is more important than ability.”
Cleveland Browns rookie head coach Freddie Kitchens may have adopted this view, as illustrated by a move he made this week.
The Browns announced Wednesday they waived Desmond Harrison, who started eight games last year, after he missed practice Tuesday on the first day of mandatory minicamp.
Apparently, Harrison missed a flight. That’s not dependable.
“Missed a flight or something,” Kitchens said of Harrison on Tuesday, according to WEWS. “I am not sure really.”
“I do not know. I have not got to the bottom of it yet. Missed a flight. I know he missed a flight. I do not know what time he got here so it is hard to tell how he got here,” Kitchens said.
Less than a day after Kitchens spoke to reporters about Harrison’s missed flight, the offensive lineman was cut, CBS Sports reported.
Harrison had “starting missing or being late to responsibilities,” NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported.
The #Browns informed former starting LT Desmond Harrison yesterday they were releasing him. My understanding is, he starting missing or being late to responsibilities. A player with a ton of talent who’ll now go on waivers.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) June 5, 2019
Harrison, 25, made the team last year as an undrafted free agent. He started eight games before being replaced by Greg Robinson halfway through the season, according to CBS.
The Browns signed lineman Brian Fineanganofo in April. The Idaho State product could compete for the backup left tackle job with lineman Kendall Lamm, per Bleacher Report.
Kitchens, meanwhile, was impressed with what his new wide receiver, Odell Beckham, Jr., did in the first day of minicamp.
Here he is again, this time juking both Joe Schobert and Denzel Ward. pic.twitter.com/35E2AVVBlJ
— Tim Bielik (@timbielik) June 5, 2019
“He’s smart,’’ Kitchens said of Beckham, Cleveland.com reported. “It is not like this is the first time he’s opened up our book. He’s been studying and all that kind of stuff. Odell is making progress just like everybody else.”
“Odell had some bad plays, and he had some good plays. Odell doesn’t have a magic wand. He’s going to come out and he is going to work. We just need a little bit of improvement every day.”
And Beckham is looking forward to building a rapport with his quarterback, Baker Mayfield.
“We have a lot of time to build chemistry,’’ Beckham said. “We’re both going to be in L.A. That’s where he stays. We’re pretty much going to be throwing every day going over all the plays, all the little nuances above the Xs and Os — the stuff that’s in the playbook.’’
Odell Beckham Jr. adjusting to Baker Mayfield.
“I’m going to have to get adjusted to the speed because he has an arm.”
“Just catching him from the first day, it was like, ‘Wow! This is completely different.'”#OUDNA | #BoomerSoonerhttps://t.co/wPfjozjX4O
— Sooner Gridiron (@soonergridiron) June 6, 2019
“I’m going to have to get adjusted to the speed because he has an arm,’’ Beckham said of Mayfield. “He’s throwing that ball hard. Just catching him from the first day, it was like, ‘Wow! This is completely different.’ It just takes time. Like I said, we play in September, so it’s a good thing.’’
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