4. Phil Taylor
Phil Taylor has essentially spent the last year and a half out of football, following multiple knee surgeries in 2014. With his recovery taking longer than expected, the Browns cut Taylor before the start of the 2015 season, and he has been waiting for his return to the field since.
Taylor, though, is a talented player, and if healthy, there’s no doubt that he would have lived up to his 21st overall selection in the 2011 draft. But it’s that “if healthy” portion that is still worrisome.
The truth is that there’s no real telling how healthy Taylor is. Both surgeries were characterized as minor scopes, but based on his recovery time, that seems to be a little bit of a mischaracterization. If he can come back to the field at even 85 percent of what he was during his first three seasons, he could be one of the better backup defensive tackles in the NFL. In fact, he could probably even compete with Sylvester Williams for the starting job.
If he isn’t healthy, though, there’s a good chance he doesn’t make it out of training camp.
