News

Actions

OUT OF BOUNDS: The start of Browns training camp

Posted at 10:48 AM, Jul 29, 2016
and last updated 2016-08-19 16:06:46-04

This week alone I must have had 10 people ask me, “Are you excited for training camp?”   

It’s actually a tough question to answer. My relationship with training camp is one very much mixed with both love and hate.

Yes, of course I can’t wait to see RGIII in action. Also, the Browns brought in an Army of rookies this season. They’re supposedly the future of this organization and who wouldn’t want to get a glimpse of what’s ahead? 

Then there is the new head coach, Hue Jackson. I have heard much about his offensive prowess and his relationships with the players. I am curious to see how he leads this young team, how he interacts with his players and how he’ll use the new weapons this team possesses.

However, there is another component of training camp that at times can be overlooked.

By Aug. 30, the team has to get their current roster of 90 to 75.  By Sept. 3, the organization must shed the roster to 53.

In a sportscast, it’s usually at most, one line.

“So and so and so and so got cut today,” we will say. Then we move on to the bigger news of the day.

But for those bottom of the roster players, this is their opportunity.  This is their chance. This is their dream at their fingertips.

Every route they run or every defensive play they make either brings them one step further or one step closer to getting a coveted spot on an NFL team that so many players so desperately desire.

There is an old saying, “It’s not personal, it’s business.”

Cuts are most definitely part of the NFL. But when your business is your passion, of course it's personal.

Last year I interviewed several players during training camp who did not make the final cut. One overcame cancer and another was significantly undersized, but through determination and self belief was able to rise through the ranks. You see the fire in these players eyes and you can feel the hunger in their hearts.

As a reporter, their dismissal was simply a line in a sportscast and a short tweet on Twitter, but as a human with my own dreams, I couldn’t help but sympathize with these players and players like them.

So while, yes, I am of course excited for the Browns season start, I will admit I don’t enjoy watching young hopefuls' dreams come to an end.