Deshaun Watson's offense, Jim Schwartz's defense top Browns' offseason program questions

The first baby step toward the start of the season arrives for the Browns on Monday.

The Browns start their nine-week voluntary offseason program this week. The program will ultimately culminate with a three-day mandatory minicamp June 6-8.

"I think about putting our team together and getting ready to play good football come Week 1," coach Kevin Stefanski said at last month's NFL meetings in Phoenix. "Expectations for our players, we always hold ourselves to a high standard. So certainly when you get back in the building and you start working towards your goals, 32 teams want to win the Super Bowl. That'll never change but, for us, we really put the focus on the work that goes into it, and a lot of that work will start in earnest on April 17."

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That minicamp will include extensive on-field work. This week — the first two weeks, really — is entirely limited to meetings, strength and conditioning work and any injury rehab.

The on-field work can start in the three-week second phase of the offseason program, which starts the week of April 31. The program's third phase, the organized team practices or OTAs, will be three-day periods over the final two weeks of May

The Browns actually will shave off a week of the offseason program compared to the rest of the league. Stefanski is doing so due to the early start of training camp because of the team's participation in the Hall of Fame Game on Aug. 6.

It may just be the start of the process to get to the season. That doesn't mean there aren't some questions to look at as it gets underway.

How does Deshaun Watson's offense start to take shape?

Yes, that reads "Deshaun Watson's offense" and not "Kevin Stefanski's" or "offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt's." It's not that Stefanski and Van Pelt, among others on staff, haven't spent months since last season ended trying to craft an offense best suited to Watson.

It's that point specifically. It's going to be an offense that fits the unique skill set that Watson brings to the field, while not forgetting the other players — specifically, All-Pro running back Nick Chubb — around him.

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"I think everybody knows that it was unique obviously to transition in-season in that way," Stefanski said at the NFL Combine. "But I think that's where this is such a great offseason for us and for Deshaun and for our offense to spend some time this spring and into this summer and seeing all those things that fit what Deshaun does well, that fit what Nick and the rest of the crew do well. So I think we're excited about that, but it is a process. It's going to take some time."

The Browns have added several new players to that offense. Most notably, they traded for still-young receiver Elijah Moore and signed veteran receiver Marquise Goodwin, while also signing Jordan Akins, one of Watson's former Houston Texans tight ends.

Now, how does all of that start to come together? The media won't get a true glimpse until late May's OTAs, but the players will get a chance to see it starting Monday.

How does Jim Schwartz's defense start to take shape?

The biggest change organizationally for the Browns after last year's 7-10 season was at defensive coordinator. Joe Woods was let go and veteran defensive coach Jim Schwartz was hired.

Schwartz's mission is simple. He has to get a defense that has been inconsistent at best to play much more consistently.

The tools are there, at least on paper. Schwartz has All-Pro edge rusher Myles Garrett, Pro Bowl cornerback Denzel Ward and a handful of intriguing young players from which to start.

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On top of that, the Browns went out in free agency and made sure to add to that group. Defensive tackle Dalvin Tomlinson (Vikings), edge rusher Ogbonnia Okoronkwo (Texans) and two-time Super Bowl champion Juan Thornhill (Chiefs) were among the biggest-ticket additions over the last month.

"We're all thrilled with the guys that we've been able to add really at all levels of the defense," Stefanski said at the NFL meetings. "Like we talked about earlier, you're always looking for more, and I promise you every coach wants more. But, yeah, Jim and the staff, they're excited. We're meeting for a long time right now, just trying to figure out where we want to go with this defense and hammer it away so that April 17 we're ready to go when the players show up."

Does Greg Newsome II's complaints about role linger?

The offseason had been, relatively speaking, free from major off-the-field headlines. Watson still has two outstanding lawsuits from women alleging sexual assault or sexual misconduct in massage appointments he has been dealing with, and 2022 fourth-round pick Perrion Winfrey was arrested last week in Texas for misdemeanor assault of his girlfriend.

Outside of those two obviously still serious issues, most of the news around the Browns has concerned on-field things. That includes the one potential controversy that did crop up involving cornerback Greg Newsome II and his complaints about his role as the slot corner.

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Newsome, the 2021 first-round pick, made it clear multiple times on social media over the last few months that he didn't like being the Browns' primary slot cornerback a year ago. It all came to a head when a report came out last week that he was looking for a trade, which he and newly rehired agent Drew Rosenhaus quickly dismissed.

Both Newsome and Rosenhaus said all's well, especially after a conversation with Schwartz. The only real question is whether or not there's any lingering effects into the offseason program, particularly if he still finds himself playing a high number of snaps in the slot.

Contact Chris at ceasterling@thebeaconjournal.com.

On Twitter: @ceasterlingABJ

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Schemes for Deshaun Watson, Jim Schwartz lead Browns offseason program