Getty Jim Nantz, Tracy Wolfson and Tony Romo.
CBS isn’t playing around with the Cleveland Browns season opener against the Tennessee Titans.
With the massive hype surrounding the squad, CBS has sent it’s No. 1 team of Jim Nantz, Tony Romo and Tracy Wolfson to cover the game, which should be must-watch TV featuring the likes of Baker Mayfield, Odell Beckham Jr. and Myles Garrett on the field making plays.
Nantz was on the local radio 92.3 The Fan in Cleveland on Thursday talking about the matchup and showered praise on Mayfield.
“You’ll probably see the graphic when we come on the air early, ‘Cleveland’s won only 1 of its last 20 openers,'” Nantz said via . “Do you think Baker Mayfield’s concerned about what happened those other 20 years in the opener? Not a bit. And that’s what makes him great.”
Jim Nantz on @923TheFan: “You’ll probably see the graphic when we come on the air early, ‘Cleveland’s won only 1 of its last 20 openers’… do you think Baker Mayfield’s concerned about what happened those other 20 years in the opener. Not a bit. And that’s what makes him great.”
Nantz said he was excited when he saw the assignment for opening week and that it should be a change of pace from year’s past.
“I’ve been watching from afar for a long time hoping this franchise would [put] itself in the position that it enters this season, where they’re ready to be relevant for a long, long time.”
Jim Nantz: Browns Are Built for the Long Haul
The Browns have a franchise quarterback in Baker Mayfield and two of the best receivers in the NFL in Beckham and Jarvis Landry. The squad is also young at the running back position with the emergence of Nick Chubb.
On the defensive side of the ball, Cleveland could eventually start two young gun corners in rookie Greedy Williams and second-year star Denzel Ward, who made the Pro Bowl as a rookie last season. Then there’s also Myles Garrett and linebacker Sione Takitaki and Mack Wilson, who made an impact in the preseason and could eventually slide into starting roles.
Nantz sees that and believes the Browns are not just some one-hit wonder.
“The Browns are built to do something here for a long time,” he said, via Keith Britton. “This has not been a short-term fix. This has been a long-term plan and [John Dorsey] has been able to execute it, though, in a pretty short amount of time. It’s pretty impressive.”
Jim Nantz on @923TheFan: “The #Browns are built to do something here for a long time. This has not been a short-term fix. This has been a long-term plan and he’s (Dorsey) been able to execute it, though, in a pretty short amount of time. It’s pretty impressive.”
Odell Beckham Not at ‘Full-Speed’ With Hip Injury
GettyCleveland Browns wide receiver Odell Beckham.
Browns offensive coordinator Todd Monken came out Thursday saying he doesn’t believe the team has seen OBJ going full speed yet due to the hip injury he’s dealing with and the cautious approach the team is taking. It was a sentiment Beckham agreed with.
I’ve just been kind of afraid to open up,” Beckham said. “I’d rather get to Sunday and open up.”
He added it’s something he’s never dealt with before.
“It’s like having an extremely fast car and the alignment or something is off,” Beckham said. “The car can still go, but it’s dangerous.”
When asked if he was going to open up on Sunday he said: “We’ll see.”
Beckham did not play in any of the Browns preseason games and was limited for most of training camp.
Before being traded to the Browns in March, Beckham hauled in 390 passes for 5,476 yards and 44 touchdowns in 59 games with the New York Giants.
He made the Pro Bowl three-times and has said that he wants to catch Jerry Rice on the all-time receiving yards list.
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