BEREA, Ohio -- To date in Cleveland Browns training camp, there has been much focus on the quarterback position. Meanwhile, the following has taken place regarding the team's defense:
Desmond Bryant, the best defensive lineman, tore a pectoral muscle while working out before camp opened.
Second-round pick Emmanuel Ogbah moved back to a down lineman position after working at linebacker in the offseason. Ogbah now says he spends most of his time on the line but also has to learn linebacker plays.
Defensive end John Hughes, projected to start, has missed a week due to a personal matter that coach Hue Jackson refuses to discuss.
That means Nick Hayden, signed quietly just before camp opened, may start the preseason opener.
Barkevious Mingo, the sixth overall pick in 2013, has been seen practicing at inside linebacker.
Joe Haden has yet to practice full speed as he continues to rehab from ankle surgery.
Pierre Desir is now listed as a safety.
If it sounds like the Browns' defense is a bit of a lab experiment, it's because it is.
"I would use the term 'kaleidoscope,'" coordinator Ray Horton said the last time he met the media on Aug. 4, the day before the scrimmage at the team's facility. "When you turn it, you're going to get a different picture."
Which means the look will change depending on how the players are used. And how the players will be used has yet to be determined.
Horton called the loss of Bryant "a shock" and immediately led him to ask "what are we going to do to get better?"
"If somebody said, 'Well you're a 3-4. Would you be a 4-3?' Well, sure I would if I thought it would win," Horton said. "We're going to be an ever-changing defense until we find out what we do best and put the players in that position."
Coaches use practice and camp to test players at certain spots. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. What is clear is that this time of the season is not ideal to be doing a lot of experimenting.
A player like Mingo has gone from a pass-rusher to a coverage guy to now a guy being tested inside. While Ogbah said he likes the opportunity to show his versatility, he admitted learning two spots as a rookie is "challenging."
And the defensive front seems as unsettled as it can be, with Hughes' absence for what seems to be good reasons a complicating factor. Hayden started three seasons in Dallas. He's 30 and has experience, but this is his first go-round in a 3-4 after seven seasons as a 4-3 tackle.
The backups? Ogbah and rookie Carl Nassib, who did not practice in the offseason due to an unspecified injury. Armonty Bryant is in the mix, but he's suspended the first four games for PED use and faces suspension on the substance abuse and personal conduct policy as well.
Haden's situation is both concerning and encouraging. A player coming off ankle surgery who relies on speed has to prove he's back, but Haden is already ahead of the initial plan for his recovery. His return would solidify a secondary that includes two new starters at safety -- and strengthen it if he is back to his Pro Bowl self.
The rest of the defense seems to be a work in progress. That's why Horton is trying players in different roles.
"I want us to have guys that are interchangeable because I don't know what we're going to be yet," Horton said.
Yes, the Browns are searching for a defensive identity.
"I would say that's probably why we are moving so many guys in different positions," Horton said. "We're really getting used to our players. What do they do best? I don't have an answer right now. I don't know. I'll find out a little bit more in our live scrimmage. I'll find out a little bit more when we go to Green Bay, when we play Chicago, when we play Tampa Bay. I'll find out a little bit more of who can do what.
"Right now, I don't know. I don't have that answer yet."