German_Force » the youngsters. “Obviously, the re

BEREA Andy Isabella Jersey , Ohio (AP) — Freddie Kitchens got intensely defensive about the Browns new offensive star. Odell Beckham Jr. isn’t in any trouble with his coach.Kitchens’ voice rising to deliver his message, Cleveland’s first-year coach said Saturday he’s not upset that Beckham has skipped the first two phases of the team’s voluntary offseason workout program.“Of course, I would rather him be here than not here, but I understand why,” Kitchens said. “I talk to Odell every day. He knows what we’re doing offensively every day. He will be ready to play. Don’t worry about that.”While his teammates — with the exception of disgruntled running back Duke Johnson — have been practicing and developing camaraderie, Beckham, who was acquired in a March trade with the New York Giants, has been training in California.Kitchens dismissed the idea that Beckham not being around could have a negative effect on the Browns. He pointed out that NFL defensive stars Khalil Mack and Aaron Donald have not been with their teams in previous years for offseason workouts.“Now, it benefits and it is better for us to have them here us being a new staff, but if we can’t have him ready to play when he shows up, they need to find a new head coach and they need to find a new position coach,” said Kitchens, hired in January after a successful interim stint as offensive coordinator last season.Beckham has drawn some criticism for his absence, which some have viewed as more evidence that he’s a selfish player.And while Kitchens would prefer Beckham was at every practice and meeting, he’s not letting the issue sidetrack the Browns.“I also understand that you guys are trying to define and draw lines in the sand between coaches and players and players and players and that ain’t gonna happen anymore Clelin Ferrell Jersey ,” Kitchens told reporters. “And there’s no problem with Odell not being here. I’d rather him be here. He’s not here. It’s voluntary. That’s what the word voluntary means. He can decide to come or he can’t.“But under no circumstance am I going to say that I’m pissed off at Odell for not being here. He’ll be ready to play and ultimately that’s the only thing I want, for him to be ready to play when we start kicking off in September and he will be — I promise you.”Beckham spent five sometimes rocky seasons with the Giants. He was excited for a new start in Cleveland, but other than coming in for an introductory news conference on April 1, he’s been elsewhere.Earlier this week, Jarvis Landry posted on social media that he’s training and promised Browns fans that he’ll be “the best version of myself on and off the field.”Kitchens isn’t concerned about Beckham’s time away impacting his connection with Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield. The pair has trained together in the summer.“I’ll tell you this about Odell Beckham and Baker Mayfield,” Kitchens said. “I think they have a pretty good relationship and they’ve formed pretty good camaraderie. They’ve worked out for two summers in California and I don’t see their camaraderie being a problem.”As for Johnson, who asked to be traded after the team signed Kareem Hunt, there had been speculation the Browns would deal him this weekend. But that didn’t happen, and Kitchens seemed confident Johnson may stay around.“Duke is under contract,” he said. “I have said this for like a month now, I don’t know where all this trade talk started happening. People just assumed that we are going to trade him because we signed another good football player. Me, personally, I like good football players and I like as many of them as we can get. Then, it is our job to get them the ball and to help to enable them to help us win in whatever role that is.“Duke Johnson is on this football team, Duke Johnson will have a vital role in this football team and Duke Johnson will help us win football games. Am I surprised that he’s still here? No Josh Oliver Jersey , not one bit. I haven’t wavered and never said anything different other than that.” ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — Left tackle Dion Dawkins scans the Buffalo Bills locker room from the vantage point of his corner stall and sees a glimpse of a young and promising future core of a team beginning to emerge.“It’s just like a freshman class at college, and we all are growing as one,” the second-year player said following practice Wednesday.The potential is all around him.To Dawkins’ far left is rookie quarterback Josh Allen’s locker. To his immediate right is rookie receiver Robert Foster’s stall, while second-year receiver Zay Jones sits a little further down.And on the far side of the room, blocked from Dawkins’ view, are two newly emptied lockers once occupied by receivers Kelvin Benjamin and Andre Holmes, who were cut a day earlier.Their departures are not lost on Dawkins, either. He realizes how the moves have created opportunities for other youngsters over the final four weeks of a season in which the Bills (4-8) are all but mathematically eliminated from playoff contention.“Those guys know the table is wide open, so choose wisely and go hard because they could be that guy for us if they choose to,” Dawkins said.Call it an audition or “evaluation,” as coach Sean McDermott phrased it, the Bills are turning their attention to beyond this season in determining who merits further consideration and which players don’t, such as Benjamin and Holmes.Benjamin, whose contract is about to expire http://www.jacksonvillejaguarsteamonline.com/quincy-williams-ii-jersey , underperformed during his 13-month stint in Buffalo after the Bills acquired the 2014 first-round pick in a trade with Carolina. Holmes, signed through the end of the 2019 season, provided little value beyond being a regular on special teams.“It obviously didn’t work,” McDermott said, referring to Benjamin, who caught 39 of the 89 passes thrown in his direction for 571 yards and two touchdowns in 18 games in Buffalo.McDermott, however, defended the Bills’ philosophy behind trading a third- and seventh-round pick to acquire the 6-foot-5, 245-pound receiver who showed potential during three-plus seasons in Carolina.“The important thing for us is that we continue to take swings,” he said. “Some of those are going to work, and some aren’t. But the only way you get a hit is if you take a swing.”Minus Benjamin, the Bills prepare to host the New York Jets (3-9) on Sunday with an offense that could feature as many as five starters with fewer than two full seasons of NFL experience. Buffalo’s defense has four starters in their first or second NFL seasons.The youth movement is starting to show signs of gaining traction .Buffalo’s once sputtering offense, which averaged 248 yards, 18 first downs and 10.6 points through nine games, is averaging 398 yards Ryquell Armstead Jersey , 22 first downs and 27 points in its past three.Allen has combined for 391 yards passing and three touchdowns with two interceptions, and 234 yards rushing and a score in his past two games since missing four with a sprained right throwing elbow.Jones is showing signs of blossoming. He’s combined for 12 catches for 160 yards and three scores in his past three games after managing just 29 catches for 299 yards and one touchdown in his first nine.Foster has 226 yards receiving and a touchdown in three games since being promoted off the practice squad.And even Isaiah McKenzie has contributed since being claimed by Buffalo after being released by Denver last month. The second-year speedster, initially projected to return punts and kickoffs, had a career-best four catches for 46 yards in a 21-17 loss to Miami last weekend.Veteran defensive tackle Kyle Williams’ spirits are buoyed by how he saw the youngsters perform against the Dolphins.It was a game in which Buffalo rallied from a 14-6 deficit to take a lead in the fourth quarter. It was decided when Allen’s fourth-down pass landed just out of tight end Charles Clay’s reach at the goal line in the final minute.Despite the loss, it instilled a belief in Williams that the Bills are on the right path.“The heart they showed,” Williams said, referring to the youngsters. “Obviously, the result doesn’t come back the way you want it to, but they’re growing up, and you feel it and you see it.”NOTES: Rookie CB Taron Johnson is in jeopardy of missing the remainder of the season after having surgery to repair a nagging shoulder injury. … The Bills still have one open roster spot, while signing WR Da’Mari Scott and T Andrew Lauderdale to their practice squad.