'I'm here for a reason': Browns' Jerome Ford, Martin Emerson Jr. set tone for draft class' debut

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. − There weren't a whole lot of veterans playing for the Browns in their preseason opener against the Jaguars. Oh, there were a few, but barely anyone − with one very notable exception − who was anyone by NFL standards spent most of Friday on the sideline.

All that did was open the door for the Browns' young ones to step through. That's exactly what several of them were able to do in their first taste of real NFL game speed, even if the results of the game weren't necessarily regular-season real.

"I'd say the rookies in general, I was pretty pleased with them," coach Kevin Stefanski said following the 24-13 win. "With [Martin Emerson] making that play. Cade [York] was good tonight. And then Jerome [Ford] had a couple of great runs and then lost the ball, unfortunately, on that play. But up until that moment, he made a great catch, he's fighting for extra yardage. … I would tell you that what I saw in that game was very consistent with practice."

No doubt, it was probably also consistent with what the Browns saw in those players throughout the pre-draft process. In those three players alone, you didn't just have all 24 points the Browns scored Friday, but also three of the nine players they selected in April's draft.

Emerson was the Browns' first pick of the draft, taken in the third-round with pick No. 68. York was selected in the fourth round with pick No. 124. Ford was chosen in the fifth round, pick No. 156.

Then again, with neither third-round pick David Bell nor sixth-rounder Michael Woods II playing, that actually raises the percentage of the draft class to make an impact somewhat significantly. Especially when you also throw in the contributions of seventh-round pick, No. 223 overall, Isaiah Thomas, who had two sacks and three tackles for loss.

"A lot of the young guys were coming in obviously with it being their first NFL game, they have that anxiousness and anxiety that we all have when we're first getting into the league," said quarterback Joshua Dobbs, who led the Browns on three scoring drives, all capped by a rookie scoring. "So it was great talking to them before the game and telling them at the end of the day it's just football. You go out, you trust your reads, you trust your preparation, you go out and you play well. It was good to see them step into the game and do that and play at a high level."

Don't let the performances fool you, though. As much as the rookies performed well, they remained rookies.

That means there was still a bit of a wide-eyed feel to the first time they got on a field for an NFL game. Even in a game that won't matter in the grand scheme of things.

There was also an introduction to just what it means to see "NFL speed." It's speed that even for players who played at some of the biggest colleges in the country, there was an adjustment period.

"The holes close a little bit faster," Ford said. "Everything happens a little bit faster. You're not going to outrun everybody like you did in college."

He almost did, though. After he received that intro to the NFL with a 2-yard loss on his first carry, Ford, a University of Cincinnati product, took off for a 41-yard run to set the Browns up at the Jaguars 17.

Five plays later, Ford reached the end zone on a 3-yard run for the Browns' first points. It was one of two touchdowns he scored in the game, the other a 14-yard catch from Dobbs in which he was falling backwards into the end zone as he made the grab.

Ford finished with 57 yards on 10 carries, plus another 45 yards on four catches. He did fumble in the fourth quarter with the Browns deep in Jaguars territory.

Still, that big run was a big moment in settling Ford down.

"A little bit," Ford said. "I just continued to feel like it wasn't over yet. Job wasn't done until the clock ended."

Emerson's night had barely begun when he was introduced to the NFL. In fact, on the Jaguars' very first offensive play, Zay Jones pulled in a 32-yard pass to midfield despite Emerson's tight coverage.

But there was another chance. It came with less than a minute left in the first half, when Jaguars backup quarterback C.J. Beathard tried to hit Jeff Cotton Jr. on an out cut to the right.

Emerson came in just in time to pry the ball out of Cotton's hands for an interception. Not only an interception, but one he returned 75 yards for a touchdown to give the Browns the lead for good at 14-13 with 25 seconds left in the half.

"Just play the next play mentality, even if it's a great play, still just play the next play because that's the only thing that's important," Emerson said of moving on from the first play. "It motivated me actually. I had this little burning sensation, they came at me first play, in college they didn't really throw at me so I was like, OK, I'm ready now."

Emerson said afterwards that he had a dozen family and friends in the stands at TIAA Bank Field. He also had at least twice as many texts from people waiting for him when he returned to the locker room after the game.

What Emerson said he didn't have, though, was the anxious feeling that used to overcome him while at Mississippi State. That, like the memory of the first pass thrown his way in the NFL, didn't carry forward.

"I used to be more nervous," Emerson said. "Like in college I used to be a little more nervous. But right now I'm like, I'm here for a reason, worked so hard for this moment and I was ready to go out and show my teammates and build trust in my coaches and show them what I can do."

Contact Chris at ceasterling@thebeaconjournal.com.

On Twitter: @ceasterlingABJ

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Jerome Ford, Martin Emerson Jr. lead Browns' rookie debuts vs. Jaguars