Perhaps the most beneficial part of training camp starts today for the Cleveland Browns.

The Browns will be in Philadelphia, where they’ll start day one of two joint practices with the Eagles.

It will be a good couple of days to see how the team stacks up against Super Bowl-level competition.

Both joint practices will be at 5 p.m. Eastern time today and tomorrow. Each team will take Wednesday off, before playing a preseason game on Thursday.

Cleveland has already said they’ll rest their starters in that game, as there will be plenty of work getting in during the two joint practices. These two days will feature some key battles that all eyes should be on.

A.J. Brown against Cleveland’s cornerbacks

Brown is going to be a great matchup for the defensive backfield on both days, as he is easily one of the league’s premier wideouts. Cleveland’s corners get to match up with Amari Cooper and Elijah Moore often but neither are in the realm of Brown, simply put.

In last year’s joint practices between these two teams, Brown did some damage. Cleveland’s No. 1 cornerback Denzel Ward will likely draw much of the matchups in 11-on-11, but I’m interested to see how Martin Emerson Jr. fairs. The second-year corner is a nice matchup against physical receivers, it was on display last year against Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ Mike Evans.

Brown leads the way for the Eagles’ wide receivers but Devonta Smith is a problem, too. Cleveland’s corners are very talented and this is going to be great work for them.

Myles Garrett vs. Jordan Mailata

Last year, Garrett wasn’t there for one day of the joint practices so there was not much of this battle going on. Mailata has openly spoken about how good Garrett is and that he’s excited to battle with him.

Anytime that a good tackle and a premier edge rusher clash, there’s going to be some fun reps. Expect these two to go back and forth in terms of who’s winning the reps, it’ll be a sight to see.

Deshaun Watson taking on Eagles’ secondary

Watson was solid in his limited action against the Washington Commanders in his preseason debut. The Eagles’ defense offers a nice test for him, specifically in the defensive backfield.

Eagles cornerbacks Darius Slay and James Bradberry are very good at what they do, so Watson is going to have to be accurate and on time or turnovers will come about. Reed Blankenship has come along nicely and holds things down on the back end.

Overall, Watson will have his best opportunity of the preseason to get extended work in against a quality defense. If he can do what he did in one drive against the Commanders, things will work out well for the Browns’ offense. 

Standouts arise from Browns preseason loss to Commanders

There was some good that came from the Browns loss to the Commanders last night.

Featured image via Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports. Social image via Ken Blaze USA TODAY-Sports.