"The Sunday Five" is a loosely-titled piece where I talk about five NFL- or Browns-related topics related to this past week. In today's edition, I take a look at some buzz regarding a free agent safety who Cleveland might be interested in.
The Browns' front office has already come out and said that they don't anticipate being a huge player in free agency. Right now, they don't really need to be. We can basically field a 53-man roster right now. I'm not saying we have great depth at every position, but we can at least plug in some players and see how things go. The only position that really "jumps out at you" is the safety position, since we do not know if Abram Elam, who was a "Mangini guy," will be brought back this season.
If I had to guess, I'd say the Browns try to make two free agent acquisitions. One would be a low-rated veteran defensive end. I'm talking about the C.J. Mosley's of the world, or maybe even a guy like Robaire Smith is he is healthy. Then, I imagine the team would bet all of their free agent budget on the best safety they can get, whether that be Elam or somebody else.
In a previous discussion of "The Sunday Five," I mentioned the vacant safety position and the thought of the Eagles' Quintin Mikell being brought in. In the comments section, fans were enamored with the thought of getting the Chargers' Eric Weddle, arguably the top free agent safety who will be on the market. Here is another name that is being brought up now by James Walker of ESPN: the Bills' Donte Whitner.
Take a look at this quote from the Bills' general manager earlier this month, where he pretty much dismisses the thought of Whitner returning to Buffalo:
GM Buddy Nix weighed in on the futures of Drayton Florence and Donte Whitner. Asked whether the two veteran defensive backs were finished in Buffalo, Nix said, "Drayton Florence, absolutely not. We think Drayton wants to be here, and we want him here. We're going to try to sign Drayton Florence. Donte Whitner, I don't think wants to be here, and he probably won't."
In this article, Walker discusses whether Whitner would be a good fit for the Browns. His local ties would make him a fun addition, and he has shown more consistency than Elam has in his career.
It has been a bit frustrating dealing with my computer. As I briefly noted last week, my computer was inaccessible thanks to my video card not working (PCI-e slot). I put in a spare video card, but it was only PCI and is not good enough to display TV or games on my computer without significant choppiness. I ordered a new video card for my computer, but it did not work in the PCI-e slot. Either my power supply is too weak for or I need a new motherboard because the PCI-e slot doesn't work anymore. Boo!