The regular season of the NFL season is now just days away and the Cleveland Browns have been busy since they finished their preseason the other day with many moves by the team to get their roster down to the 53-man limit. They have until Tuesday at 4 p.m. to get to that number. If you are interested in sports betting, and you want to give it a shot, you can try live betting on this website. They offer excellent odds, cover a variety of sports, and you might even find a bonus.
(Photo by David Eulitt/Getty Images)
Let’s look at a few stories within this hectic time for Browns that have us all talking and wondering what will happen next.
Injuries continue to have an effect on the final 53
On the first play of the preseason finale against the Kansas City Chiefs, kick returner and wide receiver Jakeem Grant was seriously injured with a broken leg. He was put on the injured reserve list for the team today. This will now have an effect on the kick return game and wide receiver room.
Does running back/wide receiver and punt returner Demetric Felton get a spot on the roster with this injury? I still don’t believe the team will keep Felton but we will have to see.
Linebacker and special teams guru Jordan Kunaszyk also tore is MCL and will be out but there’s been no word yet on what the Browns will do with him.
Denzel Ward, the Cleveland cornerback, entering the second season of his $100 million extension. was also injured in the game against the Chiefs when he yet again suffered a concussion, his fourth one since 2018.
There has to be a major concern with Ward’s health moving forward. Unfortunately, he’s never been a healthy player and this latest concussion has to be considered a career changer. The team can’t rely on a player that is always in concussion protocol.
Moves, cuts, and releases
The Browns announced several moves on Sunday and have knocked down their roster to 76.
Here are those transactions:
They waived 9 players:
CB Caleb Briggs
LB Cam Bright
TE Miler Forristall
TE Thomas Greaney
CB Gavin Heslop
T Derrick Kelly II
S Nate Meadors
WR Anthony Schwartz
WR Jalen Wayne
Contracts were terminated
G Colby Gossett
RB Jordan Wilkins
The biggest name on the above list was Anthony Schwartz, who was a third-round pick of the team back in 2021. The former track star from Auburn just never could catch the ball and when he did, he made too many mistakes.
This should guarantee a wide receiver spot for Austin Walker who has come on strong in this preseason where he ended up leading the NFL in receiving yards. He had a game to remember against the Philadelphia Eagles where he caught seven passes for 139 yards and a touchdown.
The other significant wide receiver news on Sunday was the team announced that long-time veteran Marquise Goodwin would be back with the team after several weeks of being sidelined because of a blood clot issue. This will certainly help the team as Goodwin has been a good wide receiver for years and has the ability to take the top off of the defense with his Olympic speed and jumping abilities.
Browns trade for running back
The team went out and traded for running back Pierre Strong Jr. today and sent tackle Tyrone Wheatley Jr. to the New England Patriots. Strong was a fourth-round draft pick a year ago, coming from South Dakota State where he was a stud runner. He had a few opportunities with the Patriots and gained 100 yards on only 10 carries. A chunk of those carries occurred in a game against the Arizona Cardinals where he gained 70 yards on only five carries. One of those runs went for 44 yards.
In college at South Dakota State he was unstoppable. He finished his career with the Jack Rabbits by gaining 4,527 yards on 631 carries and scoring 40 rushing touchdowns.
He will be a welcomed addition to the running back room in Cleveland. We still don’t know what we have in second-year back Jerome Ford, who has been hampered with a hamstring injury. Those aren’t good injuries for running backs. So, getting Strong on the team could be a nice alternative to Nick Chubb, when he needs a breather this season.
The misery of kicker Cade York
(Photo by David Eulitt/Getty Images)
Cade York yet again missed an opportunity to win the game against the Chiefs on Saturday when he pulled and had a 43-yard kick attempt blocked. He did make a 40-yarder a few minutes prior to that but he’s continued to be very inconsistent by only making half of his attempts in this preseason.
#Browns coach Kevin Stefanski won't commit to Cade York being the kicker Week 1. Says those discussions are internal. Reiterates believes York is really talented.
— Scott Petrak ct (@ScottPetrak) August 27, 2023
That kind of production is not going to guarantee him a job with the Browns and I suspect the team is actively trying to find his replacement as we speak.
Speaking of the “ Replacements”, there was a great field goal kicker in that class football movie, that Cleveland might want to try out. You never know…
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