Browns Injury Report: Grant Delpit out, Denzel Ward questionable vs. Texans

The Browns have a big matchup on Saturday, but a new addition to the injury report proves worrisome.

The Cleveland Browns will be without Grant Delpit as they get set to take on the Houston Texans, but they may also be without Pro Bowler Denzel Ward.

Delpit, while the Browns have designated him for return and while he has been practicing, is not quite ready as he recovers from surgery on his groin that put him on Injured Reserve a month ago. It looks as though he will be good to go should the Browns find their way into the divisional round.

After tweaking his knee in practice on Thursday, Ward was a late addition to the injury report, he is now listed as questionable to play. However, NFL Network’s Ian Rappoport has reported that Ward is expected to be fine and to play on Saturday afternoon.

Here is every player that either has a gameday designation, was limited in Thursday’s practice, or did not practice ahead of their Wild Card showdown against the Texans.

Browns designate safety Grant Delpit to return as he practices Wednesday

Another step in the right direction for the standout safety

Head coach Kevin Stefanski mentioned Tuesday that Grant Delpit returning for Saturday’s Wild Card game as the Cleveland Browns prepare for the Houston Texans. On Wednesday he took another step towards the return as the Browns designated him to return from injured reserve as Delpit was back on the practice field.

What a boost that would be for the dominant Browns defense as Delpit was being used as a chess piece all over the field and consistently making an impact. You could see how the defense was limited in some areas without Delpit especially since the team had also lost the versatile veteran Rodney McLeod.

It was tough to hear Delpit was going on IR a month ago after he had just signed abig-timee extension. But the team battled and got into the playoffs and now could get a big boost as one of their best defensive backs could return for the playoff run that starts in Houston on Saturday.

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Browns could get safety Grant Delpit back for Saturday’s playoff game vs. Texans

The standout safety could return from injured reserve this week

Before being placed on injured reserve fourth-year safety Grant Delpit was having an impressive year for the Cleveland Browns. Unfortunately, right after signing a contract extension Delpit suffered an injury and missed the final four regular season games.

It was a tough blow for the dominant Browns defense as the versatile Delpit was impacting all over the field. With the minimum four missed games, the Browns could activate Delpit for the playoffs and head coach Kevin Stefanski said Tuesday that it was a possibility.

This is just coach speak and it doesn’t mean he will play but the fact that he didn’t shut it down means something. Though D’Anthony Bell and Ronnie Hickman Jr. have stepped up in his absence the team could still use Delpit back on the field. This will be something to monitor as the week goes on with a trip to the Texans looming Saturday.

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Breaking: S Grant Delpit placed on IR with groin injury

Cleveland Browns star safety Grant Delpit was placed on injured reserve with a groin injury. He is questionable for the playoffs.

Cleveland Browns safety Grant Delpit was placed on the team’s Injured Reserve. He will miss the final four games of the season but has not been ruled out for the potential playoffs.

Delpit injured his groin in Sunday’s game against the Jaguars when he jumped into Trevor Lawrence’s throwing lane during a blitz. It ended Delpit’s good game against the Jaguars. The injury may now end his season.

The 25-year-old veteran was playing the best ball of his career this season. The Browns rewarded him with a 3-year, 36-million-dollar contract over the weekend. Andrew Berry praised Delpit after the deal, calling him “a disruptive, heat-seeking missile in the run game while maintaining the ability to match up in man coverage.”

Delpit spent his entire rookie season on injured reserve after tearing his Achilles tendon. He will mark the 15th Cleveland Browns starter to spend time on the injured reserve list this season.

The Browns’ backups have proven themselves as capable and hungry players this season. I believe that safeties Duron Harmon, Ronnie Hickman Jr., and D’Anthony Bell will rise to this challenge. Jim Schwartz will have them prepared as the defense seeks to end the season as the best defense in league history.

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How did Browns Twitter respond to the news of Grant Delpit’s contract extension?

Here is how social media reacted to the news of Grant Delpit’s new contract.

Right before their Week 14 win against the Jacksonville Jaguars, the Cleveland Browns and safety Grant Delpit agreed to a new contract extension. The deal is for three additional years, worth $12 million per year. Delpit gets $23 million guaranteed in this new contract, meaning he will be around for at least the next two seasons.

Starting his NFL career off with a devastating achilles rupture that ended his rookie season before it started, Delpit has blossomed into one of the best strong safeties in the NFL who can play in the box, in the slot, and overtop of the defense. He currently sits sixth in Pro Bowl voting at the position as a result.

Delpit then went out and recorded a sack and three tackles that resulted in a loss for the Jaguars. He has solidified himself as part of the defensive culture in Cleveland and will hang around for a little while longer.

Here is how social media responded to the news of a new deal for the fourth-year safety.

Browns Injury Alert: S Grant Delpit leaves Jaguars game with groin injury

Cleveland Browns safety Grant Delpit exits the Jaguars game with a groin injury.

Cleveland Browns safety Grant Delpit went down with an injury during the fourth quarter against the Jacksonville Jaguars. The veteran safety injured his groin while he was blitzing Trevor Lawrence. Delpit jumped into Lawrence’s passing window and landed on Myles Garrett. Delpit was down on the field for quite a while before trainers were able to escort him off the field and into the medical tent. Delpit was later driven into the locker room on the cart. He is questionable to return. He is one of many starters to exit with an injury.

Grant Delpit played an up-and-down game against the Jaguars. The safety had a crucial sack on third down that knocked the Jaguars out of field goal range. However, Delpit found himself targeted in two major plays between Evan Engram and Lawrence. One resulted in a touchdown, the other resulted in a first down.

Delpit signed a three-year thirty-six million dollar extension this morning. Delpit has been an integral piece of the Browns number one number-one-ranked defense and the team cemented him as a long-term piece.

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Financials reportedly released for Grant Delpit’s new contract with Browns

The financials have been released on the new contract between the Browns and Grant Delpit.

The Cleveland Browns and safety Grant Delpit reached an agreement on a new contract extension that was reported bright and early Sunday morning. And now, we have a better idea of the financials of Delpit’s new deal that will keep him in Cleveland.

Per the OBR and Brad Stainbrook, it is officially a three-year deal worth $36 million that will keep Delpit under contract through the 2026 season. Delpit will receive an estimated $12 million per year, with over $23 million of that guaranteed.

In all reality, this is a two-year deal as the guarantees run through the first two years of the contract.

This totals out as the 12th-highest safety contract in the NFL. This is even before free agency hits, where more will get paid inflated deals on the open market and guys like Delpit on rookie contracts will get paid.

Now both starting safeties, Delpit and Juan Thornhill, are under contract through at least 2025.

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Report: Browns reach agreement on contract extension with S Grant Delpit

The Browns have locked up their safety long-term.

Some early morning news has broken as the Cleveland Browns and safety Grant Delpit have reportedly struck a deal on a contract extension. First reported by The OBR’s Brad Stainbrook, the former second round pick is not going anywhere anytime soon.

Delpit began stacking games for the Browns late in the 2022 season but exploded onto the scene in 2023. A threat from the nickel, from the box, and over the top, the Browns have tasked Delpit with a plethora of responsibilities, and he has not let them down.

Currently sitting sixth in Pro Bowl voting among all strong safeties, Delpit has gotten the national recognition he deserves as well this year. He is one of the better tacklers among all safeties in the NFL, falling second in the league in tackles that result in a negative play for opposing offenses.

The financial figures of the deal have yet to be released. With both Delpit and Juan Thornhill under contract long-term, the Browns have a stable backend of their secondary through at least 2025.

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6 Browns currently in the top-10 at their positions in Pro Bowl voting

The Browns have a handful of players who may see themselves in the Pro Bowl!

The NFL has released the results of their first round of Pro Bowl voting, and NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero was more than happy to pass that information along. And for the 7-5 Cleveland Browns, who find themselves within striking distance of a wildcard spot, six players are currently in the top-10 at their respective positions in voting. These names are headlined by defensive end Myles Garrett and offensive guard Joel Bitonio. However, kicker Dustin Hopkins is getting the respect amongst his peers for his ongoing heroics this year.

For the most part, the Pro Bowl is nothing more than a popularity contest among those with name recognition. The event has been stripped down to a weekend of carnival games headlined by a flag football game as well as the players have never taken the actual game on the field seriously for their own health. However, seeing the names of those who wear the brown and orange among the NFL’s best remains exciting.

Here are all six players who are currently within striking distance of making the Pro Bowl for their performances thus far in 2023.

Anatomy of a Play: How Matthew Stafford’s vision led to Puka Nacua’s 70-yard touchdown

Matthew Stafford’s 70-yard touchdown pass to Puka Nacua against the Browns was a result of Stafford’s football genius, and Sean McVay’s belief.

The Los Angeles Rams, who went into their Week 10 bye with a 3-6 record, have won their last three games since then, and quite out of nowhere, are currently second in the NFC West, and are currently eighth in the NFC playoff race. It’s a new iteration of the offense orchestrated by head coach Sean McVay and personified by quarterback Matthew Stafford, and last Sunday, these Rams blew out the Cleveland Browns’ outstanding defense with 399 total yards in a 36-19 win. Stafford completed 22 of 37 passes for 379 yards, three touchdowns, no interceptions, and a passer rating of 110.1.

The most explosive play for the Rams in that game was Stafford’s 70-yard touchdown pass to receiver Puka Nacua with 4:08 left in the first quarter. As impressive as the play was (we’ll get to that in a moment), the interesting was how it came about because McVay and Stafford collaborated on a certain look they expected to see from Cleveland’s defense.

“That’s a check that he ended up making up where I’m saying, ‘Shoot, what the heck am I supposed to do? You know, you’re playing quarterback and you’re doing our job,'” McVay said of his quarterback. “But it just goes to show you what a special player he is to be able to say, ‘Hey if we get a certain look and I recognize it, how would this be to try to attack the back end of the coverage contour and what protection?’ And I’m sitting there saying, ‘That’s a pretty good idea. I should have thought of that earlier in the week.’ And he made it come to life. And then Puka being able to finish for a 70-yard touchdown was big early in the game. But Matthew’s a baller. He had another great game, and he’s going to continue to play really well for us.”

When Stafford was queried about the play, there was only so much he was willing to disclose.

“Can’t give away my secrets,” he said. “No, but that was something actually that we had talked about, Sean and I had talked about. I kind of wanted to try to get to something like that if I could feel that one coming and was able to bounce out back into the shotgun. Obviously, Puka did a great job of kind of late hands[ing] that thing, not letting the linebacker know the ball was coming and then finishing it off with the touchdown was huge, big momentum play. A team like that that’s holding teams to 100 and whatever it is, 15, 20 yards passing, anytime you can get 70 in one play is a huge one. It was great to get that one done.”

Here’s the play, and let’s get into how it may have popped open.

The Rams were in a 3×1 set with tight end Tyler Higbee to the right formation, Nacua in the slot, and Cooper Kupp wide. Nacua flew into his seam route off the snap, and caught the ball 21 yards downfield while linebacker Sione Takitaki tried to keep pace. Takitaki didn’t do a horrible job here, but Stafford made one his patented ridiculous Matthew Stafford throws, and that was that.

Now, I don’t know exactly what the check was here — what the look Stafford saw was — and I probably wouldn’t unless I talked to either McVay or Stafford with a bottle of truth serum handy. But there’s one thing to know about Jim Schwartz’s Browns defense — Schwartz likes to send defensive backs in blitzes from either side, and he did so on this play. Safety Juan Thornhill blitzed from the play side, and safety Grant Delpit did so from the other side. The Browns had inverted Cover-2 on the back end, with cornerbacks acting as the deep defenders.

Stafford saw something similar with 9:20 left in the first quarter. The 3×1 motion was to the other side after receiver Tutu Atwell motioned to it, but you’ll notice that Delpit and cornerback Martin Emerson were blitzing from each side. Notice also that with this defensive look, linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah was responsible for extending out as the flat defender to the offensive right side. Stafford still got the ball to Nacua on that side.

My guess is that when Stafford saw a defensive back in a blitz look again, he took note and recognized that the underneath defender to that side — whoever was playing linebacker depth — would have to take the flat right away. On the 70-yard pass, the responsibilities changed because it was a 3×1 to the right side. Now, Emerson was responsible for the flat, and Takitaki had to take Nacua wherever he went. Which was exactly what happened, with cornerback Kahlef Hailassie giving help up top. And that gave Nacua the room for his release.

It’s always nice when your quarterback has a rocket arm; it’s even better when he’s also a rocket scientist. Stafford’s vision of what Cleveland’s defense would do, and McVay’s trust in Stafford’s football intelligence, set up the most explosive play of the day for the resurging Rams.