Director of Player Personnel Dan Saganey (5.1.21)
Opening statement:
“Really excited to pick (DT) Tommy Togiai here from The Ohio State University. Really excited to add him to our D line room at a position of need for us. Tommy is what we consider a very good run player who has kind of come into his own here in the last year. Excited to add an Ohio State guy who we think will be a great fit as a person for the organization and a great fit in the room and really helps upgrade our defensive line room going into the season.”
On the Browns DTs and how Togiai fits into the unit:
“We are excited. Between adding Tommy, (DT Andrew) Billings, (DT) Jordan Elliott, (DT) Malik (Jackson) and (DT) Sheldon Day who we have on the roster, as well, and had on the practice squad at the end of last year, we feel pretty good about the room going in. Again, Tommy’s skillset we are excited to add. We think he is a very good run player. Obviously, the division is a physical division in general. We think there is upside there as a pass rusher for him, as well. He is a good, powerful, explosive and quick guy to add to the room. You can never have enough defensive linemen, and we are excited to get him in the mix and see what he can do and compete with the rest of the crew here.”
On the Browns releasing DT Sheldon Richardson and if the Browns hoped to add a DT during the draft:
“It was definitely a position that we were interested in going into the draft at certain picks. We are very excited with the guys we added the first two days here. Really at this point, you kind of let the board fall as it may and try to pick the best players who we think can be good fits on either side of the ball, regardless of position. When Tommy was there, it felt like a pretty easy pick for us. Sheldon is obviously a great player and a great teammate. To add another guy to the mix who we think can compete and hopefully add some production that he gave us last couple of years is something we are pretty excited about here. Looking forward to getting him in the building.”
On what makes Togiai a strong run defender, given some of analysts say Togiai is not a good run defender:
“Tommy is quick off of the ball. Tommy for us is a really good scheme fit. He may be slightly undersized, but I do not know why they would say he is not a good run player. We look for penetrating guys up front. We think he can do that, which is disruptive in the run game. It is a trait that we look for. He did come into his own this year with showing some power and some quickness coming off the ball. When you kind of pair him with the rest of the guys we have in our defensive line group, we are always looking for quick, twitchy, explosive guys, and we think he fits that bill. Really looking forward to seeing what he can do on both sides of the ball.”
On if Executive Vice President of Football Operations and General Manager Andrew Berry delegates staff members to help inquire about rolling draft picks into next year at this point of the draft:
“We always look. It is something that we get multiple calls on to go forward and back really with each pick in the draft. It is part of our process here. We are always reaching out to teams, and teams are always reaching out to us, as well, to move back and forward. To move picks into future years is always something we are interested in, but it also comes to the point where you are excited to take a player that you really like that is sitting there. We were able to move one pick for next year, add a pick that we are excited about for next year and still have a couple of picks left to add some players that we like in this draft class, as well.”
On if the Browns has discussed potentially taking a developmental QB:
“It really just kind depends who is left on the board here. We really do like our quarterback room. We obviously have three guys in the room right now who we are excited about. It really just comes down to who is available at this point. There are a few left in the discussion, and we will see where it goes from there with the next few picks here.”
On Togiai’s ability to develop further and his personality:
“Ohio State has had a lot of really good defensive linemen come out in the last of couple years all around the league. He sat and learned from a lot of the guys ahead of him. Got a chance to see him work live at the pro day. He is a guy who is about his work as we try to be about here. (Head) Coach (Kevin) Stefanski hits on it all the time, and I think Tommy exemplifies that. He is very well respected in their program. He is a very hard worker. It is the tools that fit our system. We think he is a strong, disruptive player with high upside. I think he really showed that this year and kind of turned it on. Particularly the last couple games of the year, we thought were really impressive. Looking forward to getting him in the boat and letting him compete with the guys we have in the room.”
On the Browns drafting another Ohio State player:
“There were a couple pretty good ones this year. A lot of them are off of the board already. That is a heck of a program. Those guys are always great to us every time we go down there. I think it is a very good thing they have going there, and I am sure we will looking at plenty again next year. We are happy to add another Buckeye to the group here and a guy I think has very good upside for us.”
On if the Browns need to have four solid DTs to rotate during a game:
“D line is a position where the more guys you can keep fresh and get the most out of them, you kind of build your pass rush in waves and you build your sub packages and your base packages in waves if you can, provided you have enough depth. That is something we have tried to emphasize here through this offseason. Adding a guy like Tommy who I would disagree [with other analysts], and we do think he is a good run player with disruptive traits in the pass game, as well. It is something that really should have three-down value for us and pairs well with the rest of the guys in that room when you start to figure out how you want to gameplan each week and where you want to put different guys on the line.”
On what Togiai’s lifting stats mean when evaluating the player:
“When we researched Tommy, everybody tells you down there how strong he is and how awesome he is in the weight room. I was there live to see it, and it was impressive to watch. If anything, the bench is something you are fired up to see guys compete. You watch how the rest of the guys around that player who you know is about to light it up react. Those guys were all into it, and it was really fun to watch. They had all of their future year players around so it was cool to see. Anytime somebody blows a test out of the water, where it is a 40, the bench or anything like that, it is always fun to see. We are really looking forward to seeing how guys compete and how they interreact with everybody over the course of their pro day.”
On if taking players from big programs was by design or because the quality of competition separates them:
“There were a few small school players that went earlier that we view as really good players as well. Again, it kind of comes down to how the board plays out, what our trade up and down offers may or may not be given where we are picking in the draft and really who is available. Ohio State is such a great program so anytime you can add a guy out of there you feel pretty strongly about what you are getting. And again, Tommy is a player that earned his role on the field there this year and that we think fits our division and fits our room nicely. Fired up to add him.”
On evaluating how the front office has executed the plan that was established heading into the draft:
“We do try to lay out certain parameters. And again, it really comes down to doing the work with trade calls forward and backward in the draft. We all have players that we certainly have targeted, and we are really excited to pull the trigger and add to our roster if they are available at the right price and at the right time for us. And again, the draft is always full of surprises, particularly as you get into these Day 3 picks. When it comes to moving back and moving forward with picks, pushing picks forward is something we are always interested in, if we can do it, but also there are plenty of points in the draft where you are really excited to add a specific player. And again, in this case, really fired up to add Tommy to the group. I think we do our best to plan and then you just kind of roll with the punches as the draft goes on and do your due diligence with all your calls.”
On how Berry operates during the draft:
“You guys know Andrew pretty well. Andrew is as straightforward and as sharp of a person as you are going to get. He is a great communicator. And again, I feel like we all work really well together and we kind of have a good system going in terms of all the communication that needs to go on on draft day because there is a lot going on at certain points. Like I said, you guys know Andrew and you know how sharp and organized he is. I think we all do a pretty good job communicating throughout the entire process here.”
On if he thought it was a realistic possibility to get both CB Greg Newsome II and LB Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah:
“I would have a pretty big smile on my face like I do now. We are really excited to have those guys. Really all of our picks so far we are really excited about. These are all guys that we have obviously had targeted at certain points. To be able to get those two guys mentioned with the first two picks is exciting for our defensive unit and we will continue to add hopefully a couple more good players on both sides of the ball here the rest of the day.”
On defensive coordinator Joe Woods’ demeanor throughout the draft:
“Joe has been fired up. I have seen him making the rounds. I have had my door shot for half of this but I have had a couple of pounds on the door. He is excited. My office is right next (special teams coordinator) coach (Mike) Priefer so I think he is excited about some of these guys too that are certainly going to contribute for him too as we build this thing for next year. We are excited and really just looking forward to getting everybody in the building together and getting to work together again.”
On Saturday, May 1, 2021, 01:50:55 PM EDT, Kaylee Woodward <kwoodward98@yahoo.com> wrote:
Director of Player Personnel Dan Saganey:
Opening statement:
“Really excited to pick (DT) Tommy Togiai here from The Ohio State University. Really excited to add him to our D-line room at a position of need for us. Tommy is what we consider a very good run player who has kind of come into his own here in the last year. Excited to add an Ohio State guy who we think will be a great fit as a person for the organization and a great fit in the room and really helps upgrade our defensive line room going into the season.”
On the defensive tackle rotation and how Togiai fits in:
“We are excited. Between adding Tommy, (DT Andrew) Billings, (DT) Jordan Elliott, (DT) Malik (Jackson), (DT) Sheldon Day who we have on the roster as well, and had on the practice squad at the end of last year like we feel pretty good about the room going in. Again, Tommy’s skill set we are excited to add. We think he is a very good run player. Obviously, the division is a physical division in general. We think there is upside there as a pass rusher for him as well. He is a good, powerful, explosive and quick guy to add to the room. So again, you can never have enough defensive linemen and we are excited to get him in the mix and see what he can do competing with the rest of the crew here.”
On releasing DT Sheldon Richardson and if there was a strategy to go younger at defensive tackle position:
“Sure, yeah I mean it was definitely a position that we were interested in going into the draft at certain picks. We are very excited with the guys we added the first two days here. And really at this point you kind of let the board fall as it may and try to pick the best players that we think can be good fits on either side of the ball, regardless of position. When Tommy was there, it felt like a pretty easy pick for us. Sheldon is obviously a great player and a great teammate and to add another guy to the mix that we think can compete and hopefully add some production that he gave us last couple of years is something we are pretty excited about here. Looking forward to getting him in the building.”
On what makes Togiai a good run defender given some of the analysts are saying he is not a good run defender:
“I would say Tommy is quick off the ball and that is what makes Tommy for us is a really good scheme fit. He may be slightly undersized, but I do not know why they would say he is not a good run player. We look for penetrating guys up front and we think he can do that, which is disruptive in the run game, it is a trait that we look for. And then, again, he did come into his own this year with showing some power and some quickness coming off the ball. And again, when you kind of pair him with the rest of the guys we have in our defensive line group, we are always looking for quick, twitchy, explosive guys and we think he fits that bill. Really looking forward to seeing what he can do on both sides of the ball.”
On if Executive Vice President of Football Operations and General Manager Andrew Berry delegates people to inquire about rolling draft picks into next year:
“We always look. I would say it is something we get multiple calls on to go forward and back really with each pick in the draft. It is part of our process here. We are always reaching out to teams and teams are always reaching out to us as well to move back and forward and to move pics into future years is always something we are interested in, but it also comes to the point where you are excited to take a player that you really like that is sitting there. We were able to move one pick for next year and add a pick that we are excited about for next year and still have a couple of picks left to add some players that we like in this draft class as well.”
On if taking players from big programs was by design or because the quality of competition separates them:
“There were a few small school players who went earlier that we view as really good players, as well. It kind of comes down to how the board plays out, what our trade up and down offers may or may not be given where we are picking in the draft and really who is available. Ohio State is such a great program. To me, anytime you can add a guy out of there, you feel pretty strongly about what you are getting. Tommy is a player who earned his role on the field there this year and that we think fits our division and fits our room nicely. Fired up to add him.”
On evaluating how the Browns have executed their player acquisition plan that was established heading into the draft:
“We do try to lay out certain parameters. It really comes down to doing the work with trade calls forward and backward in the draft. We all have players who we certainly have targeted, and we are really excited to pull the trigger and add to our roster if they are available at the right price and at the right time for us. The draft is always full of surprises, particularly as you get into these Day 3 picks. When it comes to moving back and moving forward with picks, pushing picks forward is something we are always interested in if we can do it, but also, there are plenty of points in the draft where you are really excited to add a specific player. In this case, really fired up to add Tommy to the group. We do our best to plan and then you just kind of roll with the punches as the draft goes on and do your due diligence with all of your calls.”
On how Berry operates during the draft:
“You guys know Andrew pretty well. Andrew is as straightforward and as sharp of a person as you are going to get. He is a great communicator. I feel like we all work really well together and we kind of have a good system going in terms of all the communication that needs to go on on draft day because there is a lot going on at certain points. Like I said, you guys know Andrew, and you know how sharp and organized he is. I think we all do a pretty good job of communicating throughout the entire process here.”
On if entering the draft he was told the Browns would get both CB Greg Newsome II and LB Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah:
“I would have a pretty big smile on my face like I do now. We are really excited to have those guys. Really all of our picks so far, we are really excited about. These are all guys who we obviously had targeted at certain points. To be able to get those two guys mentioned with the first two picks is exciting for our defensive unit. We will continue to add hopefully a couple more good players on both sides of the ball here the rest of the day.”
On defensive coordinator Joe Woods’ demeanor throughout the draft, given the defensive additions:
“Joe has been fired up. I have seen him making the rounds. I have had my door shot for half of this, but I have had a couple of pounds on the door. He is excited. My office is right next (special teams coordinator) Coach (Mike) Priefer so I think he is excited about some of these guys, too, who are certainly going to contribute for him, too, as we build this thing for next year. We are excited and really just looking forward to getting everybody in the building together and getting to work together again.”
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