Emmanuel Ogbah is Healthy and Ready for a Breakout Year

Emmanuel Ogbah just completed up his third year of offseason workouts with the Cleveland Browns and looks forward to training camp and the chance of finally putting it all together at the highest level.

In Year 1, he spent much of his time as 3-4 outside linebacker in Ray Horton’s defense. A position he was not accustomed to and one that has been viewed as a miscast for the rookie.

In Year 2, Ogbah was rounding into form and seemed destined for a breakout sophomore campaign. He was also just beginning to build chemistry with No. 1 overall pick Myles Garrett as the pillars of a first-year DC Greg Williams’ 4-3 scheme, before a foot injury ended his season after 10 games.

Now Ogbah is healthy and ready to build off of his 2017 start and a budding friendship and tandem that should be the driving force of a young and revamped defense.

But there were some calling for Ogbah’s replacement this spring. With the Browns holding two picks in the top 5 of this year’s NFL Draft, there was some speculation that they might select NC State edge rusher Bradley Chubb at No. 4, something that Garrett had retorted based on he and Ogbah’s rapport.

Instead Cleveland took cornerback Denzel Ward with the fourth pick and Chubb was taken by Denver at No. 5.

That was just fine by Garrett who reaffirmed his point following Cleveland’s offseason workouts.

“We already have a good friendship and so that makes the chemistry already easy,’ Garrett said of he and Ogbah. “There’s no strain on how we work together and I think it would have been a little bit harder with me and Chubb having to rebuild that all over again. There’s no guarantee that it would have flowed as easily.

“I think with just how well we work together whether it’s inside or outside rush I think we can go for a pretty historic year.”

Ogbah is just as excited to be playing opposite the dynamic pass-rusher Garrett.

“Myles has the kind of explosion I’ve never seen from anybody,” Ogbah said. “He’s a very powerful man. We complement each other in the pass game and the run game. He will be a great player for a long time.”

It’s not just Garrett that’s ready to see Ogbah back on the field. Cleveland’s defensive staff has been raving about the oft-overlooked member of the Browns’ pass-rush tandem.

“A lot of people don’t give Emmanuel enough credit for what he does as a run stopper and a pass rusher,” said Cleveland DL coach Clyde Simmons. “When he broke his foot last year, things were really starting to fall for him. I thought he was starting to get a little bit more free on his rushes. He was already doing a great job for us in the run game.”

Ogbah had 29 total tackles, a team-high four sacks, two forced fumbles and six balls batted down at the line of scrimmage when he went down after the Browns’ Week 10 loss to the Jaguars.

“I think I can play a balanced game,” Ogbah told the Akron Beachon Journal . “I can stop the run. I can rush. I know exactly what I’m doing.”

Now healthy and entering Year 2 in Williams’ scheme, Ogbah looks even better according to his defensive coordinator.

“I’m so excited to see how well he’s doing out here this year,” said Williams. “He is night and day more relaxed and doing things more instinctive, not overthinking and not afraid to make a mistake than he was last year because last year we all of a sudden moved him into a new position that he had not played for in the old regime.

“He – knock on wood – staying healthy is going to really stand out this year. He has had a very, very good camp. His health has been good.”