Heeding calls to acquire a veteran receiver, Mike Holmgren turned to an old friend to provide leadership for the Browns' younger players.
At 37 and nearly two years removed from significant playing time, Bobby Engram believes he still has something to contribute to the Browns as training camp gets underway. "I see [football] as a blessing, not a chore," he said. "Training camp gets a little tough, but there's nothing like playing on Sundays, man."BROWNS TRAINING CAMP LOG: AUG. 3
What happened: Coach Eric Mangini surprised his players by announcing at their daily morning briefing that they would not do any physical work on the practice field. They spent the day in meetings and the weight room. This was an unusual schedule change so early in camp, but the first-year players had been working for seven days prior to the arrival of the veterans.
Injury report: The following players remain on the physically unable to perform list until they pass the team’s physical exam: Nose tackle Shaun Rogers (leg), defensive end C.J. Mosley and cornerback Coye Francies.
Wednesday’s schedule: Practices at 8:45-10:45 a.m. and 5:45-7:45 p.m. For updates, call 877-627-6967.
— Tony Grossi
BEREA, Ohio -- The oldest player at Browns training camp is not quarterback Jake Delhomme or kicker Phil Dawson. Each turned 35 in January.
Bobby Engram's age, 37, kind of sneaked up on everyone. He looks 10 years younger.
"Thirty seven is young," coach Eric Mangini, 39, mused.
In the game of life, yes. But for the position of wide receiver, 37 normally qualifies you for an NFL AARP card.
"There are no pass routes for 37," suggested one NFL source.
Which begs the question: Why did the Browns bring Engram to camp? Like Delhomme and a few others on the Browns' 2010 roster, this one falls on President Mike Holmgren.
"There's a lot of reasons," Holmgren said.
"He's a special man. He's one of those rare guys that you want other players, particularly young players, to be around. He's played a long time but he kept in great shape. He's an amazing guy, physically, that way."
Bonds form between coaches and players, and there is a real one connecting Holmgren and Engram. They shared a Super Bowl season in Seattle in 2005, winning the NFC Championship.
"They make a lot of money playing this game, but that ring is really something not everyone gets," Holmgren said. "You appreciate -- at least the teams I was involved with -- while you had different players in different cities, the common thread is they were unselfish teams. In my opinion, it was what a team should be.
"I think Bobby absolutely has that [quality]. He was always a leader in the receiving group for me. He is involved with sickle cell anemia through his foundation. I just like who he is. I absolutely believe there's a carryover on the field with guys like that."
Bobby Engram has 650 catches in the NFL, good for 7,751 yards and 35 touchdowns over 14 seasons since being drafted by the Chicago Bears in 1996.The year after Seattle's Super Bowl season, Engram was diagnosed with Graves' disease, which causes the thyroid gland to be overactive. The symptoms -- irregular heart beat, fatigue and insomnia, among others -- ruined his season and caused him to miss nine games.
After treatment, Engram responded with the best year of his career -- 94 catches for 1,147 yards and six touchdowns -- at the age of 34.
Engram left the Seahawks when Holmgren left the sideline for a one-year sabbatical. He appeared with the receiver-starved Kansas City Chiefs last season, but asked for his release in November. He had five catches in five games. He has 650 catches in 14 NFL seasons.
"We just decided that things didn't work out the way anyone of us had planned," Engram said. "They were gracious enough to let me go. I've just been training since then. Last year was kind of a year off for me."
In early July, long after everyone called for the Browns to add a veteran receiver, Engram was invited by Holmgren to join a small group of unsigned receivers and work out in front of the coaches. He was signed just a couple weeks before training camp started.
"I kind of had to have a real good idea, at least in my mind, of what we had [at receiver]," Holmgren said. "I just felt we needed a veteran, experienced guy in the group, certainly through training camp, at the very least."
Despite the presence of Holmgren and former Seahawks teammate Seneca Wallace, Engram quickly observed that one of his challenges here would be to learn an offense different from the one he knew for eight seasons in Seattle.
"There's very little [similarity]," he said. "They've added a few things here and there, but this is Dabe's [coordinator Brian Daboll's] offense. The guys have been helping me out, putting me in the right spots. I've been trying to mentally get caught up."
He has been assured by Holmgren that there will be "no free lunch," no guarantee of a roster spot.
"I've got my work cut out for me," Engram said. "They've got some talented young guys. I think the competition only makes you better. At end of the day, they will make the decision on what's best for the Browns."
He wouldn't say if he considers the Browns his last team. He only knows that he's not finished playing.
"Why, should I stop?" Engram said. "I see [football] as a blessing, not a chore. Training camp gets a little tough, but there's nothing like playing on Sundays, man. That window of opportunity still to get back to a Super Bowl [is alive]. That's what drives me.
"Why not? God blessed me with the tools to run and catch and be productive on the football field and then I can use this to do some great things off the field as well. It gives you a platform and a podium that not a lot of people have."