'It's just about experience': Browns rookie receiver David Bell growing through playing

BEREA − The biggest adjustment for a rookie receiver often has nothing to do with the receiver himself. Instead, as four-time Pro Bowler Amari Cooper points out, it has a lot to do with the players going against those young receivers.

"The corners are just a lot better," Cooper told the Beacon Journal. "That's the biggest transition. Sometimes it takes guys by surprise because the separation isn't as much as you will get playing on the collegiate level. So when the ball is coming to you at the catch point, it's an easier ball to catch [in college]. That's why a lot of times that you will see a guys throughout his whole college career, you know, he had great hands, phenomenal hands, then when he gets in the league, he starts dropping more balls, not because his hands are worse, just because the coverage is better. It's just harder to catch those balls."

Great hands were a big selling point on Browns rookie David Bell as he came out of Purdue. Those have remained something the third-round pick has taken pride in through the first month of his pro career.

There's still been that learning curve upon which Bell has journeyed since that late April Friday night when the Browns made him the 99th overall selection in the draft. There was rookie minicamp and the OTAs, minicamp and the a delayed start to training camp.

Bell has now entered the toughest part of the learning process. It's education that can only come through playing against real front-line NFL defensive backs on real regular-season NFL Sundays.

"I think that's what it is, really it's just about experience," Bell told the Beacon Journal this week as the Browns prepare for Sunday's home game against the Los Angeles Chargers. "You know, each game I go out there, it's just a little more experience that I've put under my belt. So, going into the next game, I'm a bit more confident going into each game."

There's evidence to back up Bell's statement. Just look at last Sunday's game at the Atlanta Falcons.

Bell's stats in the loss to the Falcons may not overwhelm someone: two catches for 35 yards. It, however, represents a step forward after just two combined catches for 12 total yards through the first three games.

Beyond just the raw stats, it's how those catches happened. The first was a 15-yard grab on second-and-16 from the Browns 42 that help set up a tying field goal late in the first half; the second, a 20-yard gain to the Browns 45 on their last drive.

"David has been doing a good job," Cooper said. "He's been studying, learning, watching a lot of film. I think he's adjusting well. You saw last week, he made a huge play in the game, a contested catch when the team needed it. He's just gonna continue to get better and better. He's one of those guys, he doesn't really say much, but he grinds."

Bell has been targeted five times this season. That means those hands, which can often turn from the best to the worst on so many rookie receivers, have been doing their job.

In fact, the only time Bell has been targeted in which he didn't come down with the ball came on the Browns' last play against Atlanta. Jacoby Brissett's pass never got to Bell, as Dee Alford − one of two defenders bracketing the rookie − intercepted the ball.

The fact Brissett was willing to look toward Bell in that moment speaks to the level of confidence the rookie has gained with his quarterback. It's a confidence developed through the work Bell has done in the days and weeks leading into the game.

"Yeah, I think he’s been doing a good job of taking the coaching from the meeting room to the field," Brissett said. "And it’s paying off in the game in critical situations, some of the big catches that he made in that game. It’s exciting to see his growth becoming more and more clear each game. Looking forward to that throughout the season."

The coaches have shown their confidence in him through the amount of snaps he's received through the first four games. He's played at least a quarter of the offensive snaps in three of the four games, with the lone exception being in the Sept. 22 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Bell played in 19 snaps against the Falcons, which represented 26% of the Browns' offensive snaps. He also had 11 special-teams snaps, which was 42% of those snaps.

That playing time, coupled with seeing the ball come to him and him catching it like he did in Atlanta, is only adding to Bell's own confidence.

"Definitely did a lot," Bell said. "Being able to compete in practice and then it translate over to the game and you can just see that you're able to make some type of plays. It just gives you a good level of confidence going into the next week's practice and also next week's game."

The next game is against a Chargers defense which ranks 17th in the league against the pass, allowing 239.8 yards a game. However, it's also a defense with plenty of talent in the secondary, from one of the best safeties in the game in Derwin James to two ball-hawking cornerbacks in J.C. Jackson and Asante Samuel Jr.

That's exactly, though, what Bell believes is part of the next step for him. When asked what he believes is where he needs to still develop, it goes back to the biggest reason why he's taken the strides he's already made.

"I just think it's the experience standpoint," Bell said. "Being able to play like actual football, being able to go out there and play against other teams and see the tendency that they have and to compare it against those type of DBs and stuff like that. I think the more that I play, you know, the better."

Contact Chris at ceasterling@thebeaconjournal.com.

On Twitter: @ceasterlingABJ

Chargers at Browns

Time: 1 p.m. Sunday

TV: CBS

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: David Bell growing through playing time with Cleveland Browns