Defensive tackle Michael Hall Jr. practiced with the Browns on Aug. 14 — one day after being arrested and charged with domestic violence for allegedly holding a gun to his fiancee’s head and hitting her on the head with a water bottle.
Hall did not make it through the 90-minute joint practice with the Vikings. Around the midpoint of the session, he walked off the field with a trainer after spending some time on the ground before walking off on his own power. The Browns still had no comment on Hall’s injury three hours after practice ended.
Hall was freed from jail on a $10,000 personal bond. He pleaded not guilty at his arraignment Aug. 14 in Avon Municipal Court.
Mike Hall (51) is practicing with the #Browns today, one day after being arrested and charged with domestic violence for allegedly holding a gun to the temple of his fiancee and hitting her in the head with a baby bottle. pic.twitter.com/pKIeH6koB9
— Jeff Schudel (@jsproinsider) August 14, 2024
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Coach Kevin Stefanski after practice knew reporters wanted to ask questions about the 6-foot-3, 300-pound rookie from Ohio State. He deftly headed them off.
“I know you guys have questions about Mike Hall,” Stefanski said in his opening remarks. “Respectfully. I don’t have much to add. I’m going to let legal proceedings play out but, and I understand you have to ask the question, but I really don’t have much on that subject. But with that, I’ll take any questions.”
Not surprisingly, #Browns coach Kevin Stefanski had little to say about defensive tackle Mike Hall being arrested and charged with domestic violence Tuesday. Hall participated in the joint practice with the Vikings Wednesday, but he left with a trainer with an undisclosed injury pic.twitter.com/8bHn4dJhoU
— Jeff Schudel (@jsproinsider) August 14, 2024
It was not for a lack of trying by the media. Reporters tried multiple times to get more information, but Stefanski would not budge. Asked whether it was a bad look for the team to let Hall practice so soon after he was jailed on a domestic violence charge, Stefanski answered:
“I understand the question. I would tell you we really just have to respect the process.”
• The Vikings’ defense outplayed the Browns’ offense when the teams were in 11-on-11 drills. Deshaun Watson was inconsistent. His best play was a deep throw to David Njoku. He threw several checkdowns because he was under pressure from the Vikings’ defense.
The Browns’ offensive line was flagged for at least a half dozen false start penalties. A couple of them negated successful long pass plays. One was a completion by Watson to Amari Cooper.
“We need to be way better offensively from an operations standpoint,” Stefanski said. “That was not good. Some of it was the cadence, some of it — they weren’t false starts, some of them were that the tackles were aligned too deep at times so those are all things that are correctable and we will correct them.”
The offensive line also had trouble containing the Vikings’ pass rush. Fortunately for Watson and Jameis Winston, pass rushers pull up before sacking quarterbacks in these practices. Otherwise, the Browns might be down to Tyler Huntley and Dorian Thompson-Robinson as their only healthy quarterbacks.
“I think it’s twofold,” Stefanski said. “I think they have good rushers. Credit to them. I also think that front gives us way more variation than we’ve seen, so we need that work.
“We need to talk through it as an offensive line, tight end group, running back, quarterback, just get on the same page there. Those are all valuable conversations that we definitely need to have.”
Pass protection issues in camp preceded the practices with the Vikings. Part of the problem is starting left tackle Jedrick Wills is still recovering from November knee surgery. James Hudson is working as the starting left tackle.
The more the Browns practice, the more they seem to miss Bill Callahan. Callahan coached the Browns offensive line from 2020-2023. He left Cleveland on good terms to be the offensive line coach for the Tennessee Titans. Titans head coach Brian Callahan is Bill’s son.
VIKINGS AT BROWNS
When: 4:25 p.m., Aug. 17
Where: Cleveland Browns Stadium
Records: Vikings 1-0, Browns 0-1
TV: WEWS; Radio: WKRK-FM 92.3, WNCX-FM 98.5, WKNR-AM 850, WKKY-FM 104.7
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