After getting his first look at first-round draft pick Barkevious Mingo in a Browns uniform at rookie minicamp, at least one Cleveland reporter thought he looked too small to be a 3-4 outside linebacker in the NFL.
But when Mingo was asked, “Do you think you’re skinny?” he laughed.
“Naw, I think I’m just fine the way I am,” he said, via the Medina Gazette. “I think I can hold a pretty good bit and still be effective.”
Mingo is listed at 6-foot-4 and 237 pounds, and Browns coach Rob Chudzinski compared Mingo’s build to that of Jason Taylor, the former All-Pro defensive end/outside linebacker who was listed at 6-foot-6 and 244 pounds.
“He looked pretty quick and pretty fast,” Chudzinski said after seeing Mingo on the field for the first time. “He moves around the field pretty well. It’s always different when you see guys live and in person and you’re on the field. But he had a good day and he really picks things up well. Those are the things that stood out to me. . . . Different guys have different body types and different weights they play the best at.”
So the Browns won’t try to get Mingo to gain weight. Even though, by the standards of his position, Mingo is skinny.