Cleveland Browns training camp: Ogbo Okoronkwo among 3 potential breakout players

BEREA — There's always a player or two who break out during training camp. Sometimes they're established players who just level up, or sometimes they're young players who catch on quickly.

The Browns have come back together for the start of training camp . They'll hold their first official practice on Thursday afternoon at The Greenbrier.

By the time the Browns return to Berea to continue camp in their own facility, there could be a guy or two emerging as breakout player. Certainly, by the second preseason game against the Minnesota Vikings on Aug. 17, the candidates for that will be well known.

So who could be that breakout player? Here's three guesses at who people may be talking about by the middle of next month.

Ogbo Okoronkwo, defensive end

You're probably asking how a guy who was one of the Browns' biggest free-agent acquisitions in 2023 can possibly be a potential breakout candidate, aren't you? It's a relative thing, to be honest. Okoronkwo was very good in his first season in Cleveland a year ago, recording 4.5 sacks, just half a sack shy of his career high from the previous season while with the Houston Texans. He did that, by the way, despite missing three games with a torn pectoral muscle that some initially thought was going to end his season. Another season in defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz's system, with talented teammates like Myles Garrett, Za'Darius Smith, Dalvin Tomlinson and Quinton Jefferson alongside him on the defensive line, could really unlock the 29-year-old Okoronkwo.

Jamari Thrash, wide receiver

There's always one offensive skill player who seems to capture the attention during the preseason. Remember Austin Watkins last preseason? Maybe that was a bad example, since Watkins ended up not making the initial 53-person roster even though he did have a great preseason statistically. Well, anyway, Thrash was taken in the fifth round of this year's draft after spending his final college season at Louisville. General manager Andrew Berry raved at the end of the draft about a variety of skills Thrash possessed, including "route skill and his separation ability," as well as his ability to "play outside and inside" and how "he’s good with the ball in his hands." The Browns certainly need to find someone among the cadre of young receivers they've drafted over the last few years who will really burst onto the scene and become a legitimate threat. Why not try the latest one they've drafted in Thrash?

Nathaniel Watson, linebacker

It may take a little bit of time for Watson to really open up some people's eyes, just because it's hard for a defensive player to do so when the environment is so controlled. However, the sixth-round pick in April's draft out of Mississippi State has been primed to potentially do just that since he was selected. There's a whole lot to like about Watson's game, from his versatility he provides to the way he was a tackling machine his last two seasons in the SEC. There's a pathway for him to grab a roster spot, especially on special teams. That's a pathway he can take to becoming a breakout player this preseason.

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: Cleveland Browns training camp: Ogbo Okoronkwo among 3 potential breakout players