The Browns wrapped up Day 11 of training camp — and the final practice before the preseason opener against the Packers on Friday — under stormy skies.
And with more humid and bad weather forecast across the Midwest this weekend, it might have served as a fitting backdrop for what Hue Jackson and Co. will see in Green Bay.
"Well, we're going to have to deal with the elements. I keep telling our team, 'We'll play anywhere.' That's just the way it is. Lightning. Mud. Rain. Snow. That's the kind of team we have to be," Jackson said Wednesday.
"We can't worry about the elements, every other team has to deal with it, too. So we have to find a way to deal with it, make the most of it, and win when we're in those situations."
In any case, the Browns will get their first look at what they have against a different opponent other than themselves.
"I'm going to be very into watching our football team playing, I'm probably going to have to catch myself because I have so many responsibilities as we go through this," he said.
"But I'm very excited about our guys going out and competing against someone else for a chance."
Here are four more things to know from Wednesday:
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DeValve returns, mentally prepared**
Browns rookie tight end Seth DeValve returned to the practice field Wednesday following a lingering hamstring injury that has kept him sidelined from camp until now. But the fourth-round draft pick from Princeton didn't use that as an excuse to fall behind.
"You can control the things you can control. If I can't get on the field, I can be in my notes and in my playbook and in the meetings just as diligently as anybody else," DeValve said.
And as a result, DeValve said he feels prepared to compete for a roster spot and a chance to be Cleveland's No. 2 tight end.
"One of the benefits of getting to sit back is you get to kind of see the whole picture offensively, schematically of what we're doing," he said.
"So mentally, I feel very prepared and ready to get in and do everything that I'm asked to do from a mental standpoint. Right now, physically, they're still working me back into things so it'll be an ongoing process however long that takes. But I feel prepared mentally and in my ability to get done what I've got to get done."
Jackson said he hopes DeValve can stay healthy so the Browns can evaluate him. "If he's healthy, he's a tremendous athlete ... We haven't seen much of him and he needs to be out there with his teammates practicing."
Ogbah looking forward to Lambeau
By his own admission, Emmanuel Ogbah will have "first-game jitters" Friday night when the Browns travel to Green Bay for their preseason opener.
"It hasn't hit me yet because I haven't stepped onto that field yet. I guess it will hit me once I get there," said Ogbah, who will get the chance to face his first NFL opponent in one of the league's legendary stadiums. "It's somewhere like, that I've grown up watching on TV. It will be a cool experience to play there."
He's also looking forward to suiting up against Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers or, at least, being on the same field as him.
"It's definitely going to feel great. He's a guy I grew up watching on TV, watching him play on Sundays," Ogbah said. "It'll be a cool experience to go out there and just play against a legend like that."
New Browns DL Nick Hayden learning ins and outs of 3-4
After the loss of veteran defensive end Desmond Bryant, the Browns scooped up another experienced player in former Cowboys starter Nick Hayden last month. Hayden, who enters his eighth NFL season, met with reporters Wednesday for the first time since joining Cleveland on July 22.
"I'm relentless. I'm going to get after it each play. Play hurt if I have to play hurt. Play physical. Just get after them," said Hayden, who has made 60 career starts with the Cowboys, Bengals and Panthers.
"I'll always be the one running to the ball – you'll always see me going after the ball – and just being a leader out there and helping the guys out as best as I can."
Jackson, who briefly crossed paths with Hayden in Cincinnati, added, "I remember he was a fierce competitor, he liked to play the game, he was tough, he worked hard and he was one of our final cuts. So I kind of knew who he was and when he came and worked out. So I kind of had a memory of what he did when he was there. He's worked extremely hard, and I think football is very important to him."
While Hayden described his first time playing in a 3-4 defense as a learning experience, he's earned some reps with the first-team defense along the way.
"This is something new for me and it's been great. As an older veteran it's always fun to learn something new as the years go on, so it's been great learning it so far. Guys have been great and helpful, so it's been fun."
Poyer comfortable in bigger role
As the Browns continue to rotate players in and out of a new-look secondary, fourth-year safety Jordan Poyer finds himself as the team's starter on the unofficial depth chart and in a leadership role he welcomed this past spring.
"I personally approached this like every other offseason. I tend to come into every camp preparing myself as the starter, wanting to be a starter in the NFL. It's not given, it's earned," he said.
"That's how I kind of approached this offseason, as I would have to earn that. I have a responsibility. When it comes down to it, I've done everything that I could to try and make that happen."
Jackson added Poyer has "earned the right" to be in the mix with the first-team defense and that he's "had some good moments here, but the consistency of every guy back there needs to improve."
"I've told them all that," Jackson continued, "our goal is to make sure nobody catches a ball. So that's his job. He's the center fielder back there. So if the ball is thrown down the middle, he's got to be back there to make a play and it's gotta make great tackles … we have an expectation, and we've got to get our guys up to that level, not that they're not. Again, we've done certain things out here in practice but we'll find out more about our guys come Friday."
