CLEVELAND, Ohio — The Browns’ linebacker room took a devastating hit with news that Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah won’t play in 2025, suddenly elevating rookie Carson Schwesinger’s importance. The latest Orange and Brown Talk podcast provides a fascinating window into the rookie’s skill set and why his unique combination of instincts and intellect might help fill the enormous void left by JOK’s absence.
Podcast host Dan Labbe explained: “And this is a guy who now, his role... Kind of saw this coming when they drafted him, but certainly now that we know for sure, JOK is not going to play in 2025, obviously his role as a rookie becomes more important,” setting the stage for their analysis.
What makes Schwesinger particularly intriguing is his standout trait – exceptional football instincts that allow him to diagnose plays rapidly and take optimal pursuit angles. Analyst Lance Reisland highlighted this quality after watching him at rookie minicamp.
Reisland stated: “His number one quality, without question, he’s instinctual. And when he gets through the line of scrimmage, and I have a clip up of him getting skinny, he doesn’t give offensive lineman any surface area.”
This instinctual play was showcased during minicamp when Schwesinger jumped a route for an interception, displaying the spatial awareness and anticipation that made him the FBS leader in solo tackles last season. The podcast discussion revealed that these instincts aren’t just natural gifts but are enhanced by Schwesinger’s academic background.
Reisland explained: “He’s a bioengineering guy, so those kind of guys are real intellectual. They want to know what’s going on. They want to know what’s going on with the offense and how they’re trying to do things. So, you know, he’s going to be a film guy because he wants to know those things, because then he can allow his instincts to take over.”
Another revelation from the podcast was Schwesinger’s surprising build. While his college tape might have suggested a somewhat slender frame, in-person observation told a different story.
Reisland noted: “The thing that I was most impressed about... is that he’s a lot thicker than I thought he was. He’s got tree trunk legs. And I thought he was a thin guy,” potentially addressing concerns about Schwesinger’s ability to stack and shed blockers at the NFL level.
The combination of football intelligence, physical tools, and instinctual play creates an intriguing profile, but the podcast also explored another factor that could accelerate Schwesinger’s development – the potential mentorship from Owusu-Koramoah himself.
Labbe suggested: “So if JOK is around and in the building, which it sounds like he’s going to be, this feels like it could be a very good pairing to have JOK kind of guiding Schwesinger along and just sort of teaching him like, hey, this is what I do. This is how I watch it. This is how I anticipate stuff,”
This mentorship opportunity could prove invaluable, particularly given the similarity in how both players blend athleticism with anticipation. While Schwesinger can’t fully replace JOK’s unique skill set, he brings complementary traits that might help address Cleveland’s issues against interior runs – a problem Reisland noted has troubled the defense in recent seasons.
As the Browns progress toward training camp, Schwesinger’s development takes on newfound urgency given the linebacker depth chart’s current state. His transition from collegiate star to NFL contributor will now be accelerated by necessity rather than design.
Want to hear the complete breakdown of Carson Schwesinger’s skill set and how he might help fill the void left by JOK’s injury? Listen to the full Orange and Brown Talk podcast for detailed analysis from Lance Reisland and Dan Labbe on the rookie linebacker’s potential impact in 2024.
Here’s the podcast for this week:
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Note: Artificial intelligence was used to help generate this story from the Cleveland Orange and Brown Talk Podcast by cleveland.com. Visitors to cleveland.com have asked for more text stories based on website podcast discussions.