As we heard Sunday, Browns VP of player personnel Alonzo Highsmith indicated Sam Darnold was his preferred quarterback until late in the draft process. Baker Mayfield then became the consensus choice. However, the first-year Browns exec had one interesting reason for being less interested in Josh Rosen, whom the Browns worked out at UCLA and hosted on a visit.
“I was at an airport. UCLA’s volleyball team was in front of me. You heard so much about Rosen. He’s this or that,” Highsmith said, via cleveland.com. “We all know how people talk. So I asked one of the volleyball coaches, ‘What’s Rosen like?’ He said, ‘Aaaaa, you should probably ask his girlfriend. She’s one of the players. She’s over there. I’m like, ‘All right, coach. That’s good enough.’
“I don’t know what all this means, but there was something about him that bothered me.”
The Browns were not connected closely to Rosen, the least mobile of this year’s top QB contingent but also the player who could well be the readiest to start in Week 1, and they preferred a more mobile passer. But this candor is rather interesting and may not age well if Rosen has a strong rookie year for the Cardinals. It’s not the first time a key Browns exec’s made a comment on a quarterback they bypassed.
As for Allen, Highsmith wasn’t interested in hearing excuses for why the Wyoming player couldn’t complete 57 percent of his passes in either of his two years as a starter.
“Josh Allen … big arm … he could throw the ball from here to the moon,” Highsmith said. “When they have to make excuses … why are they not completing passes? That’s a problem. Baker Mayfield lost two receivers (from the 2016 team) and he was the same quarterback.”
- In addition to Matt Ryan‘s five-year, $150MM Falcons extension being a per-year record, it contains the most Year 1 money in NFL history. The 11th-year quarterback will take home $52.5MM in 2018, Dan Graziano of ESPN.com reports. However, Matthew Stafford still holds the signing bonus record. Ryan will see a $46.5MM bonus, per Graziano. That’s just shy of Stafford’s record $50MM signing bonus agreed to last year.
- Elvis Dumervil is currently without a team after the 49ers did not pick up his option. The 49ers did not draft an edge defender this year, and John Lynch indicated Dumervil — his teammate for two seasons with the Broncos — could be brought back and may not need a full offseason in what would be his 13th year. “Yeah, I think it could be,” Lynch said (via Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle) of a possible reunion with the 34-year-old pass rusher. “I’m sure a lot of (teams) are looking at it as such. Elvis isn’t a guy who at this stage of his career really needs to be around in an offseason. He’s a professional. He takes tremendous pride in how he trains, how he eats and all those things. So he’ll be ready.” Lynch mentioned the 49ers plan to evaluate some younger players for pass-rushing roles, though, so it could be a while before a possible reunion commences. Dumervil made $4.5MM with San Francisco last season and registered a team-high 6.5 sacks.
- The Texans are moving second-year cornerback Treston Decoud to safety, Mark Berman of Fox 26 tweets. A 2017 fifth-round pick, Decoud played in 10 games for the Texans as a rookie. Decoud played cornerback in both of his seasons at Oregon State. He’s the younger brother of former longtime Falcons safety Thomas Decoud. Houston signed Tyrann Mathieu in free agency and drafted Justin Reid with its first 2018 pick, a third-rounder, so Treston Decoud could stay a depth piece at his new position.
- Houston’s revamp of its scouting department will see the franchise hire nine-year Patriots staffer James Liipfert as the new director of college scouting, Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle reports. Liipfert will succeed Jon Carr in this role. Having been with the Patriots during each year Bill O’Brien was, Liipfert served the past three seasons with the Patriots as a national scout after previously being an area scout.
So you didn’t choose Rosen because a coach of another sport said that his girlfriend was the one to ask about him? The more the people who run the Browns speak, the more I understand why they have sucked for so long.
Yeah that no sense whatsoever. The volleyball coach said to ask his girlfriend and that was “good enough for you”? Is there a good hour of context missing?
All you have to do is look at his interview with the NFL network after he got drafted, he came off as annoying, privileged, and entitled kid. He’s already the most annoying person in the NFL, if I was a team he wouldn’t have even been on my board.
If you really believe that that is all he needed to make his decision then you’re clearly clueless……and just as annoying as Rosen.
People that aren’t Browns fans still assume that a homeless man was the only reason they took Manziel so sometimes it’s hard for me to find logic in things that they say
So pathetic any athlete makes this much playing a children’s sport and the men and women protecting this country and giving these players these right make pennies on the dollar to athletes. Way to go America you really know how to invest your money.
Agreed
It’s the world we live in, do something productive to change it, or get over it.. Either way, solely complaining does no one any good..
Regardless, I agree, same for teachers who educate our youth, police who actually protect and serve the oublic, etc..
I do not think this is the place for this convo., but still my point is though, change only comes with actions..
he might try sending his “thoughts and prayers” that change will come.
Agreed. Stop clicking your likes, get off the couch, get out of the house and DO SOMETHING.
Myself, I do things to make a difference in my community, volunteering 3 Saturdays a month with the local city mission to hand out food bags to needy individuals.
What I would love to see is more grossly overpaid athletes and entertainers doing similar things. They’re welcome to join with us any time. We can use the help.
Supply and demand my friend. I don’t like it either, but there are a finite number of NFL jobs available.
You could always donate more of your salary to help the poor teachers, firemen, soldiers, police officers etc if you really want to make a difference.
At the very least, you could stop supporting all the overpaid athletes and the major sports sponsors.
Alonzo Highsmith is not exactly the sharpest tool in the shed. Listening to what he says is comical relief more then football edicate.
It’s ‘comic’ relief and ‘etiquette’.
The Browns are asking assistant girl’s volleyball coaches for scouting reports.
This explains a lot.
This vball coach prob didn’t want to say anything either way, or he probably didn’t have much. So he deferred to Rosen’s girlfriend. Because he could. It’s one thing to of thought this. It’s another entirely to say it out loud. Wow.
If Rosen tears it up and Mayfield is a bust, I bet Highsmith is going to be REALLY sorry he shared these comments…
Highsmith’s comments about Rosen may not have made much sense, but the ones about Allen were right on.