CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Monte Gaddis watched Ray Farmer walk out of the Cleveland Browns' complex on Wednesday.
"I didn't know where he was walking," Gaddis told cleveland.com.
It didn't take long for Gaddis to solve the puzzle. Farmer was headed straight for the 23-year-old, who spent the first three mornings of the week outside of the facility, sign in hand, hoping for a chance at a tryout.
"I was like, 'Oh, snap. He's coming to me,'" Gaddis said. "I had to take a few breaths just to get things right."
Gaddis explained his reason for standing outside of the Browns' building. Farmer, the team's general manager, told him he could have chosen a different way to get his message across to the organization.
"I told him I felt this was the best route I had since I didn't have an agent or anything," Gaddis said. "I told him, 'Hey, it got you to come across the street to talk to me. I think I did a good job.' He chuckled, so it was a good feeling."
The two chatted for a few minutes. Farmer asked Gaddis to submit some game tape. He advised the former Maryland walk-on and Towson standout to bring the film on Thursday, but Gaddis went home, retrieved the necessary tape and returned to Berea to deliver it to the team's personnel department.
Gaddis, a Cleveland Central Catholic graduate, coaches running backs at the school and hosts a mentoring program and various fundraisers. He played as a freshman at Maryland before he was dismissed from the school for academic failure. He enrolled at Dean College in Franklin, Massachusetts and ultimately transferred to Towson, where he starred at linebacker. He went undrafted and played in Poland earlier this year.
Gaddis said he didn't plan on occupying his usual real estate on the pavement across the street from the football complex on Thursday. He intended on leaving the sign that reads "overlooked Cleveland native," "starving for my first shot" and "why not?" at home.
Now, he'll just wait for that call.
"The one thing I'm waiting for is that tryout," Gaddis said. "That's all I'm waiting for. I know they're going to love me. The city is behind me. I have all of the support. I just hope the coaching staff feels the same way.
"I'm just going to keep praying."
The guy is a little small for an ILB, but I like his heart.
His highlight real looks pretty good too. He does have good instincts.
We should give him a tryout if only for the good publicity.
I'm not sure how trying him out can cause any problems. Can't hurt! Is there any league rules preventing us from giving him an hour or so of time to try out?
#GMSTRONG
“Everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not to his own facts.” Daniel Patrick Moynahan
"Alternative facts hurt us all. Think before you blindly believe." Damanshot
I'm not sure how trying him out can cause any problems. Can't hurt! Is there any league rules preventing us from giving him an hour or so of time to try out?
Nope. We have brought in numerous QBs to try out on a semi-annual basis, and brought in kickers last year to replace Cundiff when he foundered.
Micah 6:8; He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
John 14:19 Jesus said: Because I live, you also will live.
He would have to become the RUDY of special teams. I don't see why he can't be on the 85 roster and let him be that example of a somebody working hard and pushing other young players to do so.
jmho
Defense wins championships. Watson play your butt off! Go Browns! CHRIST HAS RISEN! GM Strong! & Stay safe everyone!
If nothing else he could teach our outside linebackers to set the edge, and our inside linebackers to stay in their gaps. Chuck Driesbach, and Brian Fleury are not getting the job done.
I don't agree w/that. I can't believe the guy is playing. I saw him make one excellent play where he did set the edge and blew the play up, but he is engulfed by the blockers on almost every single play.
He's not making the tackles, but he's not supposed to. He is turning the play inside, though. He has been setting up the edge blocker in front of him, then somehow making this hop step where he stays engaged and gets outside the blocker just before the runner gets outside the tackle box. It's pretty impressive. There was a play in the Cincy game where he did that and Shelton ended up making the tackle and Orchard got real animated with Shelton... I don't know if it's because Shelton's tackle allowed the runner to gain two more yards or so than he should have, or if he was just fired up about owning his blocker on that play.
*I think the play you are talking about is where he stayed home on the read option play. I wasn't even considering that play when I made my comment.
In the Browns scheme, the role of the edge defender isn't to make the tackle... it's to turn the runner back inside to allow the inside backers to make the tackle.
The guy is a little small for an ILB, but I like his heart.
His highlight real looks pretty good too. He does have good instincts.
We should give him a tryout if only for the good publicity.
Gaddis is too light to play MLB in the NFL...210 lbs is not going to get it done in the middle of 300+lb linemen.
Watching the video, you can see he relies on his quickness to get away from those college Olinemen, but in the Pros, the quickness of those Oline guys is way better than the competition Gaddis faced in college.
IMO, his only chance to make the Browns would be as a special teams player.
If he could put on 30 lbs and retain his quickness, he might stand a chance to play LB in the pros...but 210 lbs is just too light.
London Fletcher was only listed at 5'-10", but he weighed 245 lbs, quick, strong and had some of the best MLB instincts I have seen. He was a remarkable MLB and played 16 seasons.
Just ST... He has to be THE STUD GUY...not just one of the guys.
To make it on the roster...I can see him getting an invite for the 85 roster but to make the 53...I think he has to learn the trade of SS - and be Bademosi good (at corner) at the least.
jmho
Defense wins championships. Watson play your butt off! Go Browns! CHRIST HAS RISEN! GM Strong! & Stay safe everyone!
I think that setting the edge is a true weakness in Pettine's scheme. It's been that way for years. They never have been good at setting the edge. They have been good at generating a pass rush in the past, but even that sucks right now. They crash their outside guys too much, leaving the edge exposed.
And I still disagree w/you about Orchard doing a good job of setting the edge.
I think that setting the edge is a true weakness in Pettine's scheme. It's been that way for years. They never have been good at setting the edge. They have been good at generating a pass rush in the past, but even that sucks right now. They crash their outside guys too much, leaving the edge exposed.
And I still disagree w/you about Orchard doing a good job of setting the edge.
One of you is right. The coach says that Orchard is doing a good job setting the edge.
I'm going to side with the guy who is not a quack and the coach.
LOL.........that was pretty funny. We usually agree on most players. It's surprising we see this one so differently.
Did crfs really call me a quack. Do you think I could get away w/that?
See, this is the big problem w/the board. It's the girl's lunch table at a middle school.
You and I were talking about Orchard. We disagreed. No big deal. No insults. Just a difference of opinion and then crfs comes in and feels the need to insult another poster. It's lame and it makes this a worse place. We have too many of these people here.
I think that setting the edge is a true weakness in Pettine's scheme. It's been that way for years. They never have been good at setting the edge. They have been good at generating a pass rush in the past, but even that sucks right now. They crash their outside guys too much, leaving the edge exposed.
And I still disagree w/you about Orchard doing a good job of setting the edge.
The coach says that Orchard is doing a good job setting the edge.
After the first couple of losses this season he said the team was "close."
