The Cleveland Browns might still be evaluating their revamped defensive front after their mandatory minicamp. However, one of the team’s newest additions, Jared Verse, has already identified a teammate that he’s excited to play alongside.

Former Los Angeles Rams edge rusher Verse offered high praise for Browns’ pass rusher Alex Wright, as found in the interview posted by the Cleveland Browns YouTube channel on June 16.

“I looked up Alex, right? And I saw Alex and I was like, this is going to be a lot of fun," Verse said.

This comes after he studied his new teammates before coming for camp. Verse was acquired in a blockbuster trade with the Los Angeles Rams that sent defensive end Myles Garrett to the Rams.

He is excited to play against Wright, who has an overall grade of 78.5 according to PFF. He was voted by his teammates as the recipient of the 2025 Ed Block Courage Award, that honors who best exemplify courage, compassion, commitment, and community.

Entering a pivotal year in his development, Verse, the former first-round pick is expected to play a significant role in Cleveland’s pass rush rotation and has a 15.3% pass rush win rate at edge (17th out of 43 qualifying edge rushers), according to ESPN's Daniel Oyefusi.

Verse also talked about how the atmosphere around the team did not reflect their previous year’s record.

“5 and 12, it’s going to be a lot different,” said Verse. “I could tell just by the way people are executing, even like you do a drill wrong, people are calling themselves back. Usually I’m the person that calls people out and says they get back, people self-facilitating, so I like that.”

The Browns are looking to build momentum after a disappointing 2025 season. With Verse, the Browns have a nice young defensive core featuring players like defensive tackle Carson Schwesinger, defensive tackle Mason Graham, the aforementioned Wright.

The Browns also possess offensive players with a lot of potential, such as tight end Harold Fannin Jr. and running back Quinshon Judkins. However, one such player could leave the Browns.

Browns Could Trade Away Young Star After Training Camp

Last season, the Browns had to depend on Shedeur Sanders due to injuries to their other quarterbacks. Despite Browns head coach Todd Monken praising Sanders during the offseason, he hasn’t chosen his starter yet. Now, ESPN insider Jeremy Fowler revealed that the Browns could trade away Sanders if he doesn’t win the QB1 role.

“The Shedeur Sanders factor where, if he doesn’t get the job, is he the right backup for your team?” Fowler said on ESPN Cleveland. “It’s hard to expect to be the starter every year when you are a fifth-round pick. You’ve got to earn it, you’re not promised anything.”

While Deshaun Watson’s contract expires at the end of the year and is unlikely to be renewed, the Browns do have two first-round picks in 2027. If Sanders cannot prove himself by then, it is very much possible that the Browns do trade him away.

Sanders had an inconsistent rookie season as he threw for 1,400 yards at a completion rate of just 56.6% and had a combined eight touchdowns. He also threw 10 interceptions despite only playing eight games, with seven of those being starts.

While Verse is yet to share his review on Sanders, what do you think of his take on Wright and the duo's performance in 2026? Let us know in the comments.

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Written by

Dhruv Vishnu Nair

Edited by

Soheli Tarafdar