Tag: Browns roster moves

Browns sign practice squad TE Kyle Markway to a 2-year contract

Markway was elevated from the practice squad for the divisional round game

Per his agent, Brett Tessler, the Cleveland Browns have signed tight end Kyle Markway to a two-year contract to stay with the team.

It’s the first move of the offseason for the Browns after falling in the AFC divisional round. Markway was on the active roster for the game in Kansas City as a practice squad elevation, but the tight end was on the inactive player list. He did not see any action for the Browns beyond the practice field.

Markway joined the Browns in September as a free agent. He spent the rest of the 2020 season on the team’s practice squad. The South Carolina product was an undrafted free agent in 2019 who spent his rookie year on the New York Giants practice squad, with a stint in Pittsburgh as well.

Expect more of these types of signings with the season now complete.

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Browns sign OL Anthony Fabiano, activate LB B.J. Goodson

Fabiano started 4 games for the Browns in 2016

Facing a depth crunch along the offensive line due to several injuries, the Cleveland Browns brought back a familiar old name. The Browns signed lineman Anthony Fabiano to the active roster on Wednesday.

Fabiano has been with the Browns before. Back in 2016, he played in four games, starting one, as a rookie center out of Harvard. He’s also played for the Indianapolis Colts in 2017 and has spent time on several practice squads in the meantime. Fabiano spent the 2018 preseason with the Browns, too.

The team also activated linebacker B.J. Goodson from the reserve/COVID-19 list, which is a very welcome development to help bolster the defense. Goodson was the team’s leading tackler in the regular season despite missing the final two games. He was the first player to test positive for COVID-19 during the latest wave of infection.

Practice squad safety Elijah Benton was also activated from the reserve/COVID-19 list.

Browns sign CB Brian Allen off the Bengals practice squad

Allen was a 5th-round pick of the Steelers in 2017

The Cleveland Browns have tapped into one AFC North team’s talent reserve to help them beat another divisional foe. The Browns signed cornerback Brian Allen off the Cincinnati Bengals’ practice squad on Monday.

Allen is a third-year corner who has relevant experience for this week. He was a fifth-round pick by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 2017 NFL Draft and spent his first two seasons playing for this week’s Browns opponent. The 6-3 Allen has bounced around practice squads and active rosters with the Bills, Seahawks, 49ers and Bengals in the last two seasons. He played in one game for the 49ers in 2020, logging 24 snaps.

The team has a roster opening with CB Kevin Johnson being placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list over the weekend.

Browns claim WR Marvin Hall off waivers from Lions

Browns claim WR Marvin Hall off waivers from Lions

On Tuesday afternoon, the Cleveland Browns bolstered the team’s wide receiver ranks by adding veteran Marvin Hall off waivers from the Detroit Lions.

The Browns will receive a roster exemption for Hall that will expire once he’s permitted to join the team in accordance with testing protocols. He won’t count against the active roster limit until that time.

Hall, 27, entered the NFL as an undrafted free agent in 2016, joining the Oakland Raiders, where he was waived before the start of the season. The former Washington Huskie is very well known for being a field stretcher, with a reported blazing fast 4.28 40 yard dash at his pro day.

He was able to flash that speed with the Falcons in 2017, catching this 40-yard touchdown from Matt Ryan in his debut for the team.

He didn’t see much action until 2020 when with the Detroit Lions, where he was able to have a breakout performance of 4 catches for 113 yards against the Indianapolis Colts.

As for his impact on the Browns, it could be one that translates quickly. Since losing wide receiver Odell Beckham in Week 5 against the Cincinnati Bengals, quarterback Baker Mayfield has completed seven passes for 25 yards or more in the five games after the injury.

Hall provides a true speed threat down the field for Mayfield, who has shown a willingness to throw to anyone across the field, with names like KhaDarel Hodge and Breshad Perriman finding success under the young signal-caller.

Similar to Perriman, who also was known for his speed coming out of college, Hall has had some issues catching the ball in 2020, dropping four passes, but it is worth noting that in his combined 25 games in 2018 and 2019, he did not record a drop on 30 targets.

Adding a player like Hall is just what the doctor ordered for head coach Kevin Stefanski, who can add Hall to his arsenal on offense, as well as open things up for the running game by taking the attention of safeties with his vertical threat.

While it is early, this looks like another solid bet by general manager Andrew Berry to bolster the roster as the team continues to move towards a playoff push.

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Browns activate Tedric Thompson, sign Ja’Marcus Bradley from practice squad

Thompson and Bradley could both make their Browns debuts on Sunday

New safety Tedric Thompson officially joined the Cleveland Browns active roster on Saturday. Claimed off waivers from the Kansas City Chiefs earlier this week, Thompson finally passed through the required COVID-19 protocols. He was activated off the commissioner’s exempt list and added to the 53-man roster.

Thompson will wear No. 37 for the Browns, his third NFL team in four seasons. He has starting experience and can play either safety spot, though he’s better in the free safety spot.

The Browns also signed wide receiver Ja’Marcus Bradley to the active roster from the practice squad. Bradley could make his NFL debut against the Titans. Now in his second season on the practice squad, Bradley helps fill the void left by KhaDarel Hodge and Taywan Taylor both being ruled out for Week 13 with injuries.

Browns activate Jack Conklin and Cody Parkey, elevate 2 from practice squad

Conklin and Parkey tested negative several days in a row to get activated

The Browns were busy on Saturday making adjustments to the roster for Sunday’s matchup with the Philadelphia Eagles. Cleveland activated two starters from the reserve/COVID-19 list and promoted two practice squad players to the active roster.

Right tackle Jack Conklin and kicker Cody Parkey each cleared protocols and were activated from the COVID-19 list. They were placed on the list during the week as close contacts to someone who tested positive. Conklin and Parkey had to test negative five days in a row to get activated, and both hit that benchmark on Saturday.

The Browns also elevated DE Cameron Malveaux and OL Michael Dunn from the practice squad. Malveaux and Dunn will fill the roster spots vacated by Myles Garrett and Chris Hubbard, who remain on the reserve/COVID-19 list after testing positive in the last 10 days.

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Browns waive OL Evan Brown during the bye week

Brown played in five games in Cleveland, all on special teams

In need of an open roster spot to add linebacker Elijah Lee to the active roster, the Cleveland Browns waived rookie offensive lineman Evan Brown on Thursday.

Brown was one of the unheralded street free agents signed by the Browns just before the draft. A center and guard out of SMU, Brown spent his 2019 rookie campaign with both the New York Giants and Miami Dolphins. He played only on special teams in five games for the Browns this year.

Lee finally cleared the NFL’s COVID-19 protocols after being claimed off waivers from the Detroit Lions. The linebacker played under Browns defensive coordinator Joe Woods in San Francisco. He had been on the commissioner’s exempt list while awaiting his passing of COVID-19 testing.

Brown will be eligible for waiver claims on Friday.

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Browns claim LB Elijah Lee off waivers

Browns claim LB Elijah Lee off waivers from the Detroit Lions

The Cleveland Browns have added a reinforcement at the linebacker position. The Browns have successfully claimed LB Elijah Lee off waivers from the Detroit Lions.

Lee played exclusively on special teams for the Lions. He does have some NFL starting experience with the San Francisco 49ers in the 2018 season and played his first three seasons in San Francisco. That gives him some overlap time with Browns defensive coordinator Joe Woods, who was on the 49ers staff in 2019.

Lee, 26, was originally a seventh-round pick by the Minnesota Vikings in the 2017 NFL Draft. He played collegiately at Kansas State.

The move is not yet official. Lee is currently on the commissioner’s exempt list until he passes the requisite COVID-19 protocols.

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Browns sign WR Taywan Taylor from the practice squad

Taylor fills the opening created when KhaDarel Hodge went on I.R.

In a move that was expected by many, the Cleveland Browns have signed wide receiver Taywan Taylor from the team’s practice squad to the active 53-man roster. The team announced the move on Wednesday.

Taylor’s promotion from the practice squad comes one day after the team placed WR KhaDarel Hodge on injured reserve. Hodge suffered a hamstring injury during pre-game warmups in the Week 4 win over Dallas and will miss at least the next three games as a result.

Taylor played in three games for the Browns in 2019, with zero catches on one target, after spending his first two seasons in Tennessee. He has been on Cleveland’s practice squad all year.

Taylor bolsters the depth at wide receiver. Rookie Donovan Peoples-Jones figures to be Hodge’s primary on-field replacement as the team’s No. 3 wideout.

Browns sign Dontrell Hilliard to the active roster

Hilliard joins Jovante Moffatt in moving from practice squad to active roster this week

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The Browns turned to a familiar face to fill the open spot on the 53-man active roster. Running back Dontrell Hilliard gets the nod.

Hilliard was signed off the team’s practice squad on Wednesday. He has been on the team’s practice squad all season after playing in 25 games in his first two years in Cleveland as both a running back and return man.

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With return specialist JoJo Natson now on injured reserve, Hilliard’s role is likely to focus on special teams. He’s also proven a capable receiver (20 catches) out of the backfield.

The Browns signed another member of the practice squad, safety Jovante Moffatt, to the active roster on Tuesday.