Details On Greg Robinson's Contract
- The Browns signed offensive lineman Greg Robinson earlier this week, and ESPN’s Field Yates tweets some of the financial details of the deal. It will be a one-year, $790K contract for the former second-overall pick, and the deal contains no guaranteed money. Robinson started six games for the Lions last season, but he was ultimately released by the team in November. Robinson isn’t guaranteed to make Cleveland’s roster, and he’ll likely compete for a reserve role.
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Texans Claim Roderick Johnson Off Waivers
The Texans have claimed offensive tackle Roderick Johnson off of waivers from the Browns, a league source tells Field Yates of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Johnson was released by Cleveland on this week to make room for the addition of former No. 2 overall pick Greg Robinson. 
Johnson, a fifth-round pick in the 2017 draft, missed his entire rookie season with a knee injury. The new regime, led by GM John Dorsey, preferred to the potential of Robinson over that of Johnson, even though Johnson is ostensibly back to full health.
The Texans will assume the remainder of Johnson’s rookie contract, which has three years remaining. He’ll carry a cap number of just $547K if he sticks on the roster.
The Texans project to start Julie’n Davenport and Seantrel Henderson at the tackle spots to open the season. Meanwhile, they’re looking to fortify the bench with Jeff Allen on the PUP list. Johnson could fit in as a reserve, along with third-round tackle/guard Martinas Rankin.
Browns Sign Greg Robinson
The Browns have signed offensive lineman Greg Robinson, per a team announcement. To make room on the roster, fellow lineman Roderick Johnson has been waived. 
Robinson, the former No. 2 overall pick in the 2014 draft, has been looking for work all offseason. Of course, things haven’t gone according to plan for Robinson since leaving Auburn to enter the NFL. Robinson started in 42 of 46 appearances with the Rams, but the advanced metrics at Pro Football Focus rated him among the league’s worst tackles in each of his first three seasons. Then, right around this time last year, the Rams shipped him to the Lions for a sixth-round pick.
Robinson started six games for the Lions in Taylor Decker‘s absence, but didn’t perform all that well. The Lions released Robinson in November when Decker returned to the lineup and he did not hook on with another club in 2017.
Johnson, meanwhile, was a fifth-round pick in the 2017 draft. He missed his entire rookie season with a knee injury and the new regime apparently was not interested in seeing what he could do at full health.
Ogbah A Reason Browns Took Ward Over Chubb
- One reason the Browns opted for Denzel Ward over Bradley Chubb, who they had rated alongside one another on the non-quarterback sector of their draft board: a belief in third-year defensive end Emmanuel Ogbah. A Sashi Brown-era investment, Ogbah played well before breaking his foot last November. The new-look Browns are high on Ogbah having a strong season opposite Myles Garrett, Terry Pluto of cleveland.com notes.
Kendricks To Begin At WLB For Browns
- The Browns plan to slot Mychal Kendricks at weakside linebacker going into camp, per Zac Jackson of The Athletic (subscription required). Christian Kirksey played every snap at that spot last season and is signed long-term. Jackson doesn’t see him losing his job. The Browns believe Kendricks can play all three linebacker positions, but how Cleveland distributes playing time will be interesting since Jamie Collins — the league’s highest-paid off-ball linebacker — and 2017 Pro Bowler Joe Schobert are the other incumbents. It’s arguable Kendricks, long upset with his role in Philadelphia, had an easier path to playing time with the defending Super Bowl champions than he does with a team coming off an 0-16 season.
This Date In Transactions History: Tim Couch
One of the most notorious draft busts in NFL history, not many remember Tim Couch‘s time with any team other than the Browns. But on this date 14 years ago, Couch signed a one-year deal with the Packers. After being selected first overall by the Browns in the 1999 draft, Couch started parts of five seasons in Cleveland. The team finally threw in the towel on him by releasing him in June of 2004. A week later, he signed with Green Bay.
Couch was already being hailed as the next great quarterback before he even entered college. ESPN once ranked him as the sixth-greatest high school player of all time. The heavily recruited Couch ultimately chose to play at Kentucky, where he went on to be a star. After three seasons at Kentucky where he set numerous records, Couch declared early for the NFL draft.
The Browns were preparing for their first season in the league as an expansion team after the original team left for Baltimore in 1996. They were looking for a quarterback to guide them as they started over and ultimately decided on Couch. Although Couch had his moments and even led the Browns to a playoff appearance in 2002, he mostly struggled. He threw for more interceptions than touchdowns and a sub-60% completion rate during his time in Cleveland. He was benched for Kelly Holcomb before ultimately being cut.
Couch’s time with the Packers ended up being brief. He struggled during camp and the preseason, in which he was often booed by the Lambeau Field fans, and suffered a shoulder injury. Just before the season was set to start, he was released by the team, effectively ending his NFL career.
His short run with the Packers was far from a glorious end to the career of one of the most high profile draft picks of his generation. The mention of Couch’s name is still enough to elicit shudders from Browns fans everywhere. It’s nearly impossible to find a list of the league’s biggest draft failures that doesn’t have Couch’s name on it, and his name will forever live on in infamy.
Browns OC Excited About QB Depth
- During his tenure as Steelers offensive coordinator, Todd Haley worked with quarterbacks like Ben Roethlisberger, Byron Leftwich and Michael Vick. However, the current Browns offensive coordinator say he may be working with the best grouping of signal-callers throughout his career. “This is probably one of the best – if not the best – quarterbacks rooms, in general, that I’ve had,” Haley told Patrick Maks of ClevelandBrowns.com. “The group, in general, is what I’m excited about. I think that it’s an intelligent, intelligent group, with ability to throw the football and make plays with their legs, some of them. When you have that, I think that good things happen. Competition is created in the room, even though they’re working hard together to help each other and get better as a group.” The Browns are currently rostering a trio of quarterbacks in Tyrod Taylor, Baker Mayfield, and Drew Stanton.
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NFL Suspends Browns’ Donald Stephenson
Browns offensive tackle Donald Stephenson has been suspended by the NFL. He’ll miss the first two games of the season after violating the league’s substance abuse policy. 
Stephenson skipped the Browns’ mandatory minicamp this week, which resulted in an 80K+ fine. The suspension will be even more costly as he’ll lose out on a pair of game checks.
In the interim, Stephenson will be eligible to participate in all offseason and preseason practices and games. He’ll be able to rejoin the team on Monday, September 17 after the Browns’ season opener against the Jets and their Week 2 contest against the Saints. His first game back should come on Sept. 20 when the Browns face the Jets in Cleveland.
Stephenson, 30 in September, saw his 2017 season with the Broncos cut short due to a torn calf muscle. He appeared in seven games with four starts before being shut down for the year. Stephenson’s 303 snaps were not enough to qualify for Pro Football Focus’ rankings, but in a larger sample, he would have graded out as the 12th-worst tackle in the league.
After signing a one-year, $2.5MM deal with Denver, Stephenson was slated to start the year as the first tackle off of the bench behind starters Shon Coleman and Chris Hubbard. He’s likely still in line for that role, though he’ll have to wait until Week 3 to see live action. For the first two weeks of the year, the Browns may lean more heavily on reserves Spencer Drango and Roderick Johnson for support.
Minor NFL Transactions: 6/14/18
Today’s minor moves:
Cleveland Browns
- Signed: K Ross Martin
- Waived: LB DeMarquis Gates
Detroit Lions
- Signed: TE Sean McGrath
- Cut: TE Wes Saxton
Indianapolis Colts
- Signed: DB Michael Cirino
- Waived: DB Channing Stribling
Tennessee Titans
- Signed: WR Brandon Shippen, CB Jarell Carter
- Waived: WR Zach Pascal, CB Jeremy Boykins
Minor NFL Transactions: 6/13/18
Here are Wednesday’s minor moves.
Atlanta Falcons
- Signed: RB Terrence Magee
- Waived: RB Demario Richard
Cleveland Browns
- Claimed off waivers from Raiders: LB Brady Sheldon
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: LB Austin Calitro
- Waived: LB Dadi Nicolas