Cleveland Browns: Carl Nassib’s Development

The Cleveland Browns need early returns out of third-round pick, defensive end Carl Nassib.

Of the five draft picks the Cleveland Browns made on the first two days of the 2016 NFL Draft, Carl Nassib and Shon Coleman are being asked to make the most dramatic change in terms of their role. Coleman is making the move from left tackle to right tackle while Nassib is going from a even front base end to a 5-tech defensive end in an odd front.

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Nassib’s change is slightly more dramatic than Coleman’s because he is also adding weight to accommodate his new role, so he has to adjust to his body as well as play a different role in the defense.

At Penn State, Nassib was exclusively attacking off the edge in an even front and while he occasionally ran into double teams, he was usually going 1-on-1 with the opposing right tackle. For the Browns, he will still find situations where he is only facing a tackle, but will be in more situations where he could be taking on a double team and has to be able to deal with it.

On its face, the goal of the defense under Ray Horton is for the nose guard to beat the hell out of the center and force one of the guards to help. The 3-tech defensive tackle is either trying to split the guard and tackle to his side or trying to isolate one of them to create a mismatch. If those two double team  him, then he has to try to hold his ground.

If things go as planned, the 5-tech end is isolated on the tackle; often the left tackle. The challenge for the 5-tech is to be physical enough to hold their ground against the run but athletic enough to get after the quarterback against the pass.

The best players at this position are special athletes with a ton of skill. J.J. Watt, Fletcher Cox (though he’s moving to 3-tech in Eagles 4-3 scheme), Cameron Heyward are a few notable examples. Not only are they special athletes, they are impact players because they can win in so many different ways and wreck a gameplan. That’s the challenge for Nassib and the Browns in general at that position.

Nassib is a better athlete than many expected coming out in the draft.  Even with that, his best physically may be yet to come. Nassib has the frame to keep adding muscle over the next few years, which is good in the long run and critical to his development, but presents a potential problem as a rookie.

This coming year, Nassib may get manhandled at times by physical offensive tackles while he is making up the strength differential. Nassib excelled when he was dictate the action attacking inside or outside of the opposing blocker. He wasn’t looking to bull rush opponents.

When he was asked to hold his ground, Nassib wasn’t awful against college competition but he would run his legs at times to make up the difference against double teams, as he should. This is an area that will have to improve, but it’s going to take time.

The problem with that is that the Browns just lost their only capable 5-tech from the last few years in Desmond Bryant for the season. So Nassib, who is somewhat of a work in progress for this new role, now needs to come in right away and start.

Nassib should be afforded all the reps he can handle in training camp,, which is extremely important. If his body holds up, Nassib can make the most of them and really start to figure out what it will take to succeed in the NFL. When the season rolls around, he should be in a better position to contribute in a meaningful way.

There is reason to be encouraged that Nassib can be a productive pass rusher. He has a plan before the snap and a few moves he has shown to be reliable, at least at the college level.

His best assets are his length and his pad level. Combined, they make it difficult for opponents to stop him from working around the edge, because he doesn’t give opponents a big target to hit.

Additionally, he shows decent hand usage to protect himself from allowing blockers into his body. This enabled him to dictate the action at times, which is how he was able to rack up such a big sack count as a senior.

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The question facing Ray Horton is how would he wants to utilize Nassib as a pass rusher in his scheme. Generally, a player like Nassib would kick inside to the 3-tech in obvious pass rushing situations. This isn’t something Nassib has done to this point, but it could prove beneficial.

Isolated on a guard, Nassib’s agility could cause problems for the opponent as long as he maintains leverage. His length can become a bigger advantage against what tends to be a shorter opponent, but may have to prove it in tighter quarters.

If Nassib can succeed in this area, it would fully enable Nassib to fill the role vacated by Bryant. If Xavier Cooper can step up this year, the Browns would have two players that could thrive in the role of rushing the passer from the inside. For the past two seasons, it was Bryant or bust. Even if Nassib isn’t as effective as Bryant has been in this area, it would at least suggest he can do the job going forward.

The Browns need Nassib to show signs that he can do the job this year. Bryant may have already played his last down as a member of the Browns because of his contact, age and the injury. The Browns probably will not want to pay Bryant the $8 million he’s due in 2017 (numbers via Spotrac).

If they don’t try to restructure Bryant’s contract and opt to release him, the only 5-tech defensive end on the roster is Nassib plus whoever they add to take Bryant’s roster spot. They will need to add another just as they did with Nassib this year, but the size of the investment will depend on Nassib’s rookie season.

If Nassib proves effective, the Browns can address the position with value in mind. If he struggles or gets injured, they might feel pressed to make a huge splash at the position via the draft or free agency.

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Obviously, having Nassib start wasn’t how the Browns planned this season playing out. Now that they are here, the goal is to make this as beneficial as possible in his development. If he can stay healthy, he can get every rep possible both in training camp and the regular season, hopefully making strides along the way. Nassib may come out of the gate slowly but if he can fight through and make adjustments, perhaps he will show promise by the end of this season with some highlights along the way.