BEREA ― Carson Schwesinger is on a need-to-know basis when it comes to the injury that kept him out of nearly four weeks' worth of training camp. As far as the Browns linebacker is concerned, if you're not one of his coaches or teammates, you don't need to know.
"I mean, it's just football," Schwesinger said prior to practice Aug. 29. "Sometimes things happen and you got to try and be smart about it. That's basically it. I'm ready to roll now."
Schwesinger missed his first practice Aug. 1. He finally returned to the practice field in full team drills Aug. 29.
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The 2025 Defensive Rookie of the Year never showed any obvious signs of a specific injury throughout his absence. He was routinely witnessed doing various drills, be it running or pushing/pulling sleds of weight, between the team's walkthrough and their practice during camp.
That's why Schwesinger, who was always on the field watching during his absence, didn't view it as some kind of setback.
"No," Schwesinger said. "Obviously if I could have, I would've wished to not miss them. But still tried to go in every day and find ways to get better in other ways and get ready to roll."
Coach Todd Monken would not comment on the nature of Schwesinger's injury when he was asked again about it before practice. However, he never sounded too concerned about any long-term impact when it would be brought up during camp.
Nor is Monken concerned about lost time costing Schwesinger when the Browns open the regular season Sept. 13 at the Jacksonville Jaguars. That remains more than two weeks away.
“That was the plan. That was the plan with what he was dealing with, ‘Hey, let’s take it slow with it and then just get you back with a couple weeks before we play.’”
Schwesinger rarely allowed injuries to slow him down as a rookie. He famously played through a high ankle sprain he suffered in Week 9 against the New England Patriots, and even had some of his best games while doing so, then didn't miss a snap with quad injury in a Week 17 game against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
That quad injury did cost Schwesinger the season finale at the Cincinnati Bengals, as he was placed on season-ending injured reserve. Still, that was the only time he missed as a rookie.
Naturally, the sitting and watching while others are plahying was not particularly sitting well with Schwesinger.
"Yeah, it's pretty frustrating," Schwesinger said. "It's cool also to be able to watch the guys. I think seeing what Easton (Mascarenas-Arnold) was able to do and get in there and run the show was pretty cool, especially since we came in together and we basically learned this defense together. And I think just the hard part was trying to just be able to stay mentally locked in every day and still find ways to learn and get better even though you're not getting those reps out on the field."
Schwesinger stayed connected to his defensive teammates while he was sidelined, because he was rarely too far away from them even while injured. He could routinely be seen near the huddle on the sideline, or talking to whoever wasn't in the drill at the time.
There was also the meeting room, where Schwesinger could interject what he was seeing to those playing in his place. That includes Mascarenas-Arnold, who was an undrafted free agent rookie in 2025 and who's now getting extensive snaps, partically in Schwesinger's absence.
Now, Schwesinger's ready to get back in his spot.
"I mean physically it's just getting the body back ready to roll," Schwesinger said. "I mean, at the end of the day, it's just being willing to go out there and run to the ball again when I'm out there and get the body back in shape. So I'm not too worried about that. And like I said, I think a big thing for me was making sure the mental's there the whole time. And so I just hit the ground running with that."
Chris Easterling can be reached at ceasterling@thebeaconjournal.com. Read more about the Browns at www.beaconjournal.com/sports/browns. Follow him on X at @ceasterlingABJ. Sign up for Browns Insider newsletter at https://profile.beaconjournal.com/newsletters/browns-insider/
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Carson Schwesinger 'ready to roll' for Browns after training camp injury
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