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Browns guard Wyatt Teller says 'X's and O's haven't changed' in offense. Let him explain.
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- Browns guard Wyatt Teller says 'X's and O's haven't changed' in offense. Let him explain.
BEREA — There have been countless words expended over the last several months about the changes on the offensive coaching staff of the Cleveland Browns . Specifically, there's been whole libraries' worth of them used to talk about the change at offensive coordinator .
Ken Dorsey has come in to replace Alex Van Pelt at offensive coordinator . Also new are running backs coach Duce Staley , offensive line coach Andy Dickerson and tight ends coach Tommy Rees .
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However, Pro Bowl right guard Wyatt Teller pointed out last week one aspect of the coaching staff that isn't different. It's a rather sizeable one, no less, when it comes to Teller's thoughts on the offensive scheme the Browns will employ.
"At the end of the day, while our OC has changed, our offensive line coach has changed, our head coach (Kevin Stefanski) is the same, and it's his offense, right?" Teller said after last Wednesday's OTA session. "So, like I said, the X's and O's haven't changed. Now the words we're going to be using, the way we're going to be utilizing stuff, that's the difference in the OC, stuff like that. But I truly believe that Kevin's damn good at what he does, and I have full faith in him."
Teller, like many others to this point, has only seen bits and pieces of the offense, no matter to whom you want to give ownership. The Browns are going into their second of three weeks of OTAs after having had four weeks of some on-field work previous to those.
The key to the Browns' offensive changes center around one person: Deshaun Watson . Although the quarterback is coming off shoulder surgery last November, he's also going into the third year of a five-year, fully guaranteed contract he was given when Cleveland acquired him in 2022 from the Houston Texans .
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The Browns have only gotten 12 total starts the first two seasons out of Watson, who has missed time because of a suspension for personal conduct policy violations (2022) and for multiple shoulder injuries (2023). There were glimpses during the six games he started last season of a top-10 caliber quarterback, but far from anything consistent.
Dorsey comes to Cleveland after a year-and-a-half run as Buffalo Bills offensive coordinator, a job from which he was fired midway through last season due to the team's struggles. However, during his coaching career he's worked with both Buffalo's Josh Allen and Carolina's Cam Newton during either MVP or near-MVP seasons.
"We have what he did with Josh Allen," said Teller, who spent 2018 with Dorsey and the Bills before being traded to the Browns. "I was there with him for a year. He was the quarterbacks coach not the OC; (Brian) Daboll was. So the things they were able to do there, I wasn't a part of that team. … So I knew Dorsey a little bit. But I think that what he did in Buffalo is amazing, and I loved AVP but that's the way the NFL works."
Teller's confidence in what the Browns could be offensively has been elevated by the work he and the rest of the team has done to this point. Much like with the changes to the offensive staff, though, there's something else that plays into the answer.
Buffalo Bills offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey looks on before playing against the Miami Dolphins in a NFL wild card game Jan. 15, 2023, in Orchard Park, N.Y.
The Browns had 16.2% of their offensive drives end in turnovers last season, which was second most in the league. The previous season that number was 11.2%, which was 19th in the league.
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"This offense, it's going to be just from the little glimpses, it's potent if we have the right people in the right places," Teller said. "So I said this every single year, and I'll say it again — if we execute, we're going to be a really hard team to beat. If we don't, if we turn the ball over, which we're all a part of it. … But we got to be a little bit more sound team."
Chris Easterling can be reached at ceasterling@thebeaconjournal.com. Read more about the Browns at www.beaconjournal.com/sports/browns. Follow him on X at @ceasterlingABJ
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Browns guard Wyatt Teller feels new offense remains Kevin Stefanski's
