Newsletter: "What We're Hearing" Post-Minicamp (Defense)

Switching our focus to what has been learned about Jim Schwartz' group this summer.

BEREA, OHIO - JUNE 04: Grant Delpit #9 of the Cleveland Browns runs a drill during Cleveland Browns OTA offseason workouts at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus on June 04, 2025 in Berea, Ohio. (Photo by Nick Cammett/Diamond Images via Getty Images)

We’re back with more of the same from earlier this week when I shared with you insights I have come across about the Browns offense following the summer sessions in Berea. The defense has far less mystery but there are some very noteworthy things to discuss.

I have been able to gather some opinions from folks who have a pulse on things and from those discussions create some insights that can be shared with you based on banter. Obviously everything is not shared directly and it takes some simple dot connection to provide the bigger takeaways.

Let’s dig into what I have learned about the defense from the summer sessions.

• Jim Schwartz talked about more “changeups” last offseason to his man coverage fastball and that came in the form of more Cover-2 variations and an uptick in pre-snap shell movement but there needs to be more. They are striving to be more diverse in shielding their man/zone looks to confuse quarterbacks pre and post snap. The system is known so now the goal is to make it more deceptive and that will come in multiple forms (more on this with film during the season).

Denzel Ward, Jerry Jeudy (Courtesy of the Cleveland Browns)