What happened on Day 3 of Browns training camp: Deshaun Watson rocks the red zone, David Njoku returns, Haslams speak

WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, W.Va. — Deshaun Watson won Day 3 of Browns training camp, rocking the 7-on-7 red zone drill near the end of practice.

Throwing for the third straight day of camp, Watson threw touchdown passes on 6 of his 9 red zone reps, seizing the moment from a secondary that dominated red zone drills here last summer, and during mandatory minicamp.

Watson kicked off the period with a touchdown pass to Elijah Moore, and then safety Grant Delpit broke up a pass at the left side of the end zone to tight end Jordan Akins. He threw the ball away on his third attempt, and then found David Bell for a diving TD catch on the front right side of the end zone in traffic.

In his second set, he went 3-for-4, firing TD passes to Moore on a slant on the front right side, a bootleg right to D’Onta Foreman, and a laser shot to David Njoku in the back left left side of the end zone, after which he executed his trademark Chief Slam.

Granted, the defense didn’t have starting cornerback Greg Newsome II, who underwent hamstring surgery last week. Newsome lit up the red zone in organized team activities and minicamp, and looked poised for a monster camp.

But the fact that Watson put it on the money so often in the tight quarters of the red zone bodes well for later in camp when he has to avoid pressure to get the ball off.

The Browns are still in the ramp-up phase of camp, which includes light practices in no pads. But it’s still significant that Watson has thrown for three straight days with no ill effects. What’s more, he participated in 11-on-11s for the second straight day on Saturday.

The Browns will have Sunday off and then put the pads on the for the first time on Monday. Watson will be in pads that day, and will participate in team drills, even though it will be another light practice to get used to the new gear.

In OTAs and minicamp, he was limited to every other day and worked his way up to 7-on-7s, so he remains ahead of schedule and is hitting some encouraging milestones early on.

“We’ll continue to be smart and there will be days that we pull back a little bit on him, but he’s doing a nice job,” Stefanski said. “I would just say he’s right where he needs to be. Obviously, quarterbacks don’t have to worry about contact in these practices, but he’s doing a good job. He’s got that colored jersey on that they can’t touch him, but he’s right on track.”

David Njoku practices for the first time

Tight end Njoku, who sat out the first two days of practice in a ramp-up period, joined the action on Saturday and wasted no time catching passes from Watson. He caught plenty of them in receiver drills, and somersaulted on one reception in 7-on-7. He also caught the first pass in 11-on-11s, a short flare to the left, and then corralled the TD pass in the red zone drill.

Njoku, a seventh-year pro, had been working off to the side along with Myles Garrett, who’s also healthy but easing his way into action. Garrett participated in a few drills on Saturday but without a helmet and at a walk-through pace