Jared Verse has only been a Cleveland Brown for a matter of days, but the impression he is leaving on the people inside that building is already telling a very clear story. Cleveland.com’s Mary Kay Cabot is reporting that the coaching staff has taken notice of something special in their new pass rusher, and what she noted goes well beyond the typical early offseason optimism.
“The coaches already love his energy, attitude and enthusiasm, and he’s more gregarious and vocal than Garrett. He has natural leadership ability, even as a third-year pro,” Cabot wrote.
The criticism of Garrett’s leadership was consistent throughout his time in Cleveland. He was the best player on the roster and everyone knew it, but he never fully stepped into the vocal, energetic locker room presence that a true franchise cornerstone typically becomes. He kept largely to himself, rarely set a tone that rippled through the room, and ultimately chose to leave rather than embrace being the face of a franchise.
Verse is operating differently from the jump. Alex Wright already said Verse carries a standard that does not allow anyone around him to slack. And now the coaches inside the building are expressing the kind of genuine enthusiasm about his presence that rarely surfaces this early in an offseason program.
The Browns gave up a generational pass rusher to land Verse and the accompanying draft capital. Every move of that magnitude gets scrutinized, and rightfully so. But a player who has the coaching staff fired up with his natural leadership ability and infectious energy before training camp has even opened is a player who is answering every question being asked of him.
Cleveland did not just replace a pass rusher. They may have found something more valuable.
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