Tag: Cleveland Browns roster moves

Report: Browns to release TE Austin Hooper

Browns to release TE Austin Hooper as a post-June 1st move. We broke down why that’s important

In an expected development, the Cleveland Browns are set to release tight end Austin Hooper after two seasons. Per Jeremy Fowler of ESPN, the Browns will dedicate the move as a post-June 1st designation.

Hooper is two years into a four-year, $42 million contract that has not worked out well for either party. In 29 games for the Browns, Hooper has caught 84 passes for 780 yards and seven TDs while being an adequate blocker at best. Cleveland recently used the franchise tag on TE David Njoku and also has promising young Harrison Bryant at the position.

The post-June 1st designation is important. It means the Browns cannot use any of the salary cap room created by releasing Hooper until that point. But it costs the Browns considerably less dead cap room for 2022. Using the post-June 1st designation creates $9.5 million in extra cap room for Cleveland, with a dead cap hit of $3.75 million in 2022 and another $7.5 million in 2023. All of that dead cap would hit the books in 2022 without the designation.

The release also means that the Browns will not receive any credit in the compensatory draft pick formula when another team signs Hooper.

Browns sign P Dustin Colquitt to the active roster with Jamie Gillan on reserve/COVID-19 list

The Browns sign P Dustin Colquitt to the active roster with Jamie Gillan on reserve/COVID-19 list

Faced with another COVID-related emergency, the Cleveland Browns have signed free agent punter Dustin Colquitt. The team made the move official on Friday morning, signing the veteran to a one-year contract.

Colquitt was released by the Atlanta Falcons earlier this week. He had been the Falcons punter for a few weeks. The 39-year-old is eighth all-time in punt attempts. He is the older brother of Britton Colquitt, who was the Browns punter from 2016-2018.

With Jamie Gillan going on the reserve/COVID-19 list this week, the Browns were in dire need of punting help. Gillan has not had a great third season in Cleveland; only three regular punters have a worse net average through Week 13. Colquitt’s average of 47.7 with Atlanta dwarfs Gillan’s 43.9, so this might not be just a COVID-19 replacement situation.

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Browns activate 2 from IR, waive Andrew Billings in flurry of roster moves

Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah and M.J. Stewart are back, while Andrew Billings hits the waiver wire

The Cleveland Browns kept the recording secretary at the NFL’s transaction wire busy on Saturday. The Browns activated two players from injured reserve and waived DT Andrew Billings in the flurry of activity.

Linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah and cornerback M.J. Stewart have rejoined the active 53-man roster from the team’s IR. Both had been designated to return earlier by Cleveland and are now healthy enough to help the team.

To make room for Owusu-Koramoah and Stewart, the Browns waived veteran DT Andrew Billings. The other spot was still open from the departure of WR Odell Beckham Jr. earlier in the week.

Cleveland also elevated four players from the practice squad to help cover for the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak afflicting the team. Those elevated:

RB Brian Hill

CB Herb Miller

WR Jojo Natson

FB Johnny Stanton

Hill is designated a standard elevation, while the other three are COVID-19 promotions that will not count against the number of times they can be elevated. Hill just recently joined the Browns and now could be in line to get legit carries with three RBs all sidelined on the COVID-19 list.

Billings will be subject to waiver claims. He played just 72 snaps in six games and recorded one tackle.

Browns sign Alex Taylor from practice squad among several roster moves

Taylor is back on the active 53-man roster and he’s joined by a pair of practice squad elevations

Facing a rash of injuries heading into Sunday’s visit from the Arizona Cardinals, the Cleveland Browns bolstered the roster with some personnel moves on Saturday.

The most notable move is signing offensive tackle Alex Taylor from the practice squad to the active 53-man roster. Taylor rejoined the Browns practice squad after a stint with the Bears on Chicago’s practice squad this season. The 6-foot-8 Taylor spent 2020 with the Browns as an undrafted rookie out of South Carolina State, playing in one game.

Taylor will help as insurance for the Browns at tackle, where starters Jedrick Wills and Jack Conklin are among 10 players questionable for the Week 6 game. Regular backup tackle Chris Hubbard went on injured reserve this week.

The Browns also elevated two players from the practice squad for Sunday. Defensive lineman Sheldon Day and cornerback Herb Miller received the standard elevation to help with potential depth issues. Day stood out in the preseason and has several years of NFL experience. Both Day and Miller will revert to the practice squad after the game.

Cleveland also waived tight end Connor Davis from the team’s injured reserve list.

One move the team didn’t make: Jarvis Landry remains on the IR. He will not be activated for Week 6 despite being designated for return earlier in the week and practicing with the team.

Browns sign OT Hjalte Froholdt from the Texans practice squad, place Nick Harris on I.R.

Nick Harris heads to injured reserve and the Browns sign Hjalte Froholdt to replace him on the active roster. Elijah Lee was also released:

The Cleveland Browns have added another offensive lineman to the mix. The Browns signed Hjalte Froholdt from the Houston Texans practice squad.

Froholdt takes the place of reserve center Nick Harris, who is headed to the injured reserve list with a hamstring injury. Harris has played exclusively on special teams in the first four games, accruing 16 total snaps.

Froholdt was a fourth-round pick by the New England Patriots out of Arkansas. He is a native of Denmark. Froholdt primarily plays guard, seeing time at both left and right guard in 2020 for the Patriots.

The Texans claimed Froholdt off waivers from New England last November. The 6-foot-5, 310-pound Dane did not make the Texans final roster after the preseason and spent the first four weeks on Houston’s practice squad.

The Browns also released linebacker Elijah Lee with no corresponding move.

 

Cleveland Browns roster cutdown tracker

Continuous tracking of the Cleveland Browns roster moves to get to the 53-man roster limit by 4 p.m. on August 31st

The Cleveland Browns don’t get much time to enjoy the unblemished preseason. Roster cuts are due by 4 p.m. on Tuesday, August 31st, and the Browns must trim the roster down to 53 from 80 by that point.

Many of the players who will be cut are not surprising. The Browns top 48 or so names on the 53-man roster are well-established. But there is always a wrinkle or surprise somewhere along the line.

We’ll keep updating this tracker as the roster moves flow in up to Tuesday’s deadline.

 

Pos Player
DE Curtis Weaver (per Ian Rapoport)

 

Browns sign WR Alexander Hollins, add OL to practice squad

Hollins played for Stefanski in Minnesota

The newest wide receiver in Cleveland is a familiar face for head coach Kevin Stefanski. The Browns signed WR Alexander Hollins on Monday.

Hollins spent his rookie season in 2019 with the Minnesota Vikings, where Stefanski served as the offensive coordinator. An undrafted free agent from Eastern Illinois, Hollins caught two passes in late-season spot duty after spending most of the year on the Minnesota practice squad.

Hollins will remain on the exempt list until he clears all the required COVID-19 protocols. The Browns do not have to make a move to create space immediately.

The team also signed free agent OG Cordel Igwuagwu to the practice squad. Igwuagwu is a rookie from TCU who spent part of the season on the Texans’ practice squad. He was a three-year starter at left guard for the Horned Frogs.

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J.T. Hassell promoted from Browns practice squad to active roster

Hassell was a big hitter and special teams ace in preseason

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The Browns stayed within the building to replace injured safety Morgan Burnett. Instead of signing a free agent from outside, GM John Dorsey and the Browns chose to promote safety J.T. Hassell from the practice squad on Wednesday.

Hassell is an undrafted rookie from Florida Tech who made his mark as a hard-hitting thumper in the preseason. He’s a converted collegiate linebacker, which gives him a similar skillset to the one Burnett brought as a downhill safety in Steve Wilks’ defense.

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Hassell has spent the entire season on the Browns’ practice squad. In addition to promoting Hassell, Cleveland signed safety A.J. Howard to the practice squad to replace him. Howard is in his second NFL season and has bounced around several teams, most recently the Philadelphia Eagles.

Report: Antonio Callaway faces 10-game suspension for another failed drug test

Report: Antonio Callaway faced 10-game suspension when Browns cut him

New details have come to light that help explain why Browns GM John Dorsey pulled the plug on wide receiver Antonio Callaway. Per a report from NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport, which has since been confirmed by others, Callaway is facing a 10-game suspension for violating the NFL substance abuse policy.

Callaway previously served a four-game suspension at the start of his rookie year for a violation. He was inactive for the Week 10 game against Buffalo for being late for a required attendance.