BEREA, Ohio (AP) Derrick Kindred’s painful decision to play his final college season paid off.
The TCU safety was picked in the fourth round Saturday by the Cleveland Browns, who added two more wide receivers and a tight end on the final day of the NFL draft.
Days before the Horned Frogs’ season opener, Kindred broke a collarbone during practice and was presented with two options: undergo surgery and sit or play in pain.
”I felt like the team needed me to step up and be a leader out there so I took the risk and took the chance of playing through it with it hurt,” said Kindred, who had to change his tackling form and sleeping habits to manage the pain. ”I always knew I was tough.”
The Browns were in the market for a safety after losing Tashaun Gipson during free agency and releasing Donte Whitner.
Cleveland began Day 3 of the draft by making a pick and a trade – of course.
With their first selection in the fourth round, the Browns selected outside linebacker Joe Schobert, who blossomed from a walk-on to starter and captain at Wisconsin and will likely play special teams as a rookie.
And sticking to a pattern that started before the draft, the Browns made their fourth deal, sending the No. 100 overall pick to the Oakland Raiders for a later selection in the fourth round and one in the fifth.
They then used pick No. 114 to snag Auburn wide receiver Ricardo Louis, a speed burner who had 46 receptions for 716 yards and three touchdowns. Louis is the second receiver chosen by the Browns, who took Baylor’s Corey Coleman in the first round after twice trading down. After selecting Kindred, the Browns took Princeton tight end Seth DeValve and UCLA wide receiver Jordan Payton.
The 6-foot-2, 236-pound Schobert made 28 starts at Wisconsin, where he finished with 13.5 sacks and 172 career tackles. The Browns have told him they may move him around in their 3-4 scheme.
The Browns can only hope this Joe is as good as another one they took from Wisconsin. Schobert is looking forward to meeting Pro Bowl left tackle Joe Thomas.
”I’ve never talked to him, but obviously, growing up in Wisconsin, I was a big fan,” he said. ”Hopefully, when I get there, I will be able to ask him a couple of questions about how he made his career so successful.”
Schobert was fairly confident he would be picked Saturday, but that didn’t ease his anxiety as he waited for his phone to ring.
”I was more expecting to get picked today, but once I got the call right away today, it was finally I know where I’m going and I’ll be able to go there and do what I do best. That’s play football,” Schobert said.
Not lacking in confidence, the 6-foot-2, 215-pound Louis believes teams will regret not taking him. He’s best known for hauling in the tipped pass in the final seconds to beat Georgia in 2013, a catch that propelled the Tigers to the national title.
”I’m one of the best receivers in the draft and my goal is to prove it,” he said.
—
AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and http://twitter.com/AP-NFL
Add A Comment