The only way the Browns could give No. 2 overall draft pick Carson Wentz more fuel is if owner Jimmy Haslam were to hand the rookie quarterback keys to one of his Pilot Flying J gas stations.
The Browns are in danger of being immediately burned by their decision to pass on Wentz in April’s draft because they’ll face the North Dakota State product in the regular-season opener against the Philadelphia Eagles at 1 p.m. Sunday at Lincoln Financial Field.
Not only did the new regime deliver Wentz to the Eagles by trading them the second pick, but the Browns have also supplied Wentz with a stunning amount of bulletin board material.
In July, chief strategy officer Paul DePodesta explained in an interview with WKNR (850-AM) the team passed on Wentz because it didn’t believe he’d become a top-20 NFL quarterback.
“Even though you have a desperate need for one, you have to resist the temptation of taking that guy just because you have a need if you don’t believe he’s one of those 20 guys at the end of the day,” DePodesta told the team’s radio partner. “I think that’s the hardest part, just maintaining your discipline because you have the need. That’s what we did this year.”
Wentz chose wisely to let his play speak for itself, dismissing the Browns’ draft snub and DePodesta’s comment as sources of motivation.
“That is kind of all in the past,” he said during a recent conference call. “I’m a very motivated person. I don’t need extra motivation. I’m just really excited to finally get out there and get my first start.”
But don’t let him fool you. The Eagles are well aware of DePodesta’s remark.
“We definitely had heard the comments and all that,” Eagles coach and ex-Browns quarterback Doug Pederson said. “But you know what? Everybody has their opinions, and, listen, we went to North Dakota, we worked him out, we spent a lot of time with him. ... We came away when we left there back in the spring saying, ‘This kid can be pretty special in our league.’”
Now the Eagles are convinced they made the right decision. They traded quarterback Sam Bradford to the Minnesota Vikings on Sept. 3 and catapulted Wentz from third to first on the depth chart, allowing him to leapfrog backup Chase Daniel.
The Eagles’ faith in Wentz, though, didn’t prevent a few Browns defenders from taking a page out of DePodesta’s brutally honest book in the days preceding the opener.
For example, rookie defensive end Carl Nassib took a shot at Wentz’s mechanics.
“He can run, he has good mobility, he’s got a good arm,” Nassib said. “His release is a little slow, so we plan to take advantage of that.”
Others played the intimidation card, especially because of the hairline fracture Wentz suffered in his ribs during the Aug. 11 preseason opener. He sat out the final three exhibition games.
“He can run. We know he’s got the rib issues, so we hope he does run,” free safety Jordan Poyer said. “If he does, we’ve got to make him pay for it.”
Wentz ran three times for 15 yards in roughly the half of NFL preseason playing time he received (39 snaps). He also rushed 216 times for 1,028 yards (4.8 average) and 13 touchdowns in college.
“We have to be aware of that,” two-time Pro Bowl cornerback Joe Haden said. “He’s definitely capable. He’s a big dude. He can take hits. When he does run with that ball, you’ve got to make him feel it. A quarterback scrambling, it’s a different league. You’ve got to make sure you put punishment on him and make sure they feel you when they do run.”
Wentz, 6-foot-5 and 237 pounds, said his ribs have felt great for a while.
“I recognize that this is the NFL, so running the ball, I have to learn how to protect myself regardless,” he said. “The injury is not anything that is going to change the way I play.”
He’ll also need to learn how to avoid falling for the tricks of Browns defensive coordinator Ray Horton. The defense will attempt to confuse Wentz with disguised coverages and pre-snap alignments. An ample dose of blitzing is likely in order, too.
“There’s absolutely some things that we can take advantage of with him being so young back there, and we plan on doing those things, whether it be disguising, whether it be blitzing, a variety of things to try to make sure he’s as uncomfortable as possible back there,” strong safety Ibraheim Campbell said.
The blueprint worked last year against another rookie No. 2 pick. The Browns harassed Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota, sacked him seven times and earned one of their three wins.
“They have a lot of different looks that they can bring,” Wentz said. “It will be interesting to see what they want to do to me being a young quarterback, but we will be ready.”
So the Browns must brace for Wentz looking like a franchise quarterback out of the gate.
“You always hope when a rookie comes in he is willing to perform like a rookie,” cornerback Tramon Williams said. “As a veteran player, you always hope for that, but at the same time, you can’t count on it. You may have a rare guy come in, a guy who is capable of holding his own.”
Meanwhile, the Browns’ choice to roll with free-agent acquisition Robert Griffin III as their quarterback instead of Wentz will be tested.
“It doesn’t faze me or it is not anything that I focus on it at all,” Griffin said. “Carson is a great player. He played well in college, and he has an opportunity to fulfill his dreams in the NFL. I root for guys. I’m not a ‘Negative Nancy.’ I’m not rooting for guys to fail.”
Head of football operations Sashi Brown said the teams should both feel good about the blockbuster trade they made in April because the Browns positioned themselves for future drafts and the Eagles got their quarterback.
But the bottom line is one team will feel better and the other worse after Sunday’s showdown.
Nate Ulrich can be reached at nulrich@thebeaconjournal.com. Read the Browns blog at www.ohio.com/browns. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/NateUlrichABJ and on Facebook www.facebook.com/abj.sports.