Browns have 'great opportunity' in joint practices against Super Bowl-winning Eagles

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4 days ago

BEREA — Browns rookie defensive tackle Mason Graham has gotten numerous reps over the last couple of months against two of the better guards in the league — his teammates Joel Bitonio and Wyatt Teller.
Graham's already received some outside competition because of the Browns' joint practice and preseason game at the Carolina Panthers. Things are going to step up this week, however, when Cleveland travels to Philadelphia to face the Eagles in two joint practices and another preseason game.
For the No. 5 overall pick in April's NFL draft, it's a chance to go up against one of the best offensive lines in football, even with Pro Bowl guard Landon Dickerson sidelined with a meniscus injury suffered in practice Aug. 10.
"Yeah, I mean, great opportunity," Graham said after practice Aug. 11. "They have a lot of great players up there. They work really well together. So it'd be a good challenge for us, our D line of going against them and our individual battles within that."
It's not just Graham who's about to receive a step up in competition. For just about every Browns players on both sides of the ball, the chance to go against the team that won the most recent Super Bowl is a measuring stick to see where they are and what they need to do to get where they want to go.
That's been a big reason why the Browns have made it a point to schedule joint practices with Philadelphia often during the six years Kevin Stefanski has been the coach and Andrew Berry has been the general manager. This will be the third time in four years they have done so, and the one year they didn't was when they played the Eagles last year in the regular season.
'It's a great test," Stefanski said. "I can't imagine there's a better combination of offensive line, defensive line, than the Eagles, who we're facing. So, it's an awesome test for our guys. And, again, I've been up close and seen this line when we practice against them — they're really well coached, they got great players. So, it's a great challenge for our guys.'
The Browns only did one day of practice with the Panthers. That consisted of two seven-on-seven periods and two 11-on-11 periods with the teams actually going against each other.
The additional day in Philadelphia will add a lot more context, even to what's occurred during the two days. That because it allows for more opportunities to get in reps between the teams, but also because it provides a second day to allow for adjustments to the first.
"I thought that one day in Carolina was good and that was Week 1, so I think that was the right amount of work," Stefanski said. "I think in Week 2 of the preseason, I think both — I know our team is probably ready for a second day. We've done that — outside of last week, all of our joint practices have been two days. So obviously it allows you to get more of everything. It's more one-on-one work. It's two-minute drill, it's red zone, it just allows you to hit a little bit more situational ball.'
It also means enough reps over those two days that most regulars for both teams will not play in the preseason game at the end of the week. That means no Joe Flacco, Myles Garrett, Jerry Jeudy or Denzel Ward for Cleveland, and no Jalen Hurts, Saquon Barkley, Jalen Carter or Cooper DeJean for Philadelphia.
Those players will get their moments on the two days at Eagles headquarters. Those will be the most substantial reps of the preseason in many ways.
"It's always great to be able to compete against other teams other than ourselves," Jeudy said Aug. 11. "So I'm more excited just going out there making plays and execute our play and doing what we're supposed to do."
Chris Easterling can be reached at [e-mail]. Read more about the Browns at www.beaconjournal.com/sports/browns. Follow him on X at @ceasterlingABJ
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Browns have 'great opportunity' during joint practices against Eagles