Browns Sign Jordan Payton, Scooby Wright
- The Browns begin getting their draftees under team control today by signing fifth-round wideout Jordan Payton and seventh-round linebacker Scooby Wright to their rookie deals, tweets Rand Getlin of the NFL Network. Cleveland still has plenty of business left to conduct — the team drafted 14 players, so 12 remain unsigned.
Update On Jimmy Haslam's Legal Situation
- Browns owner Jimmy Haslam continues to be tied up in civil lawsuits filed against Pilot Flying J, a truck-stop chain owned by him and his brother. An Associated Press report (link via Ohio.com) provides the latest details on Haslam, who has agreed to be deposed “under specific conditions.”
Cabot: Could Browns Have Been Targeting Buckner?
Before the draft, the Browns indicated they had zeroed in on a player with the No. 8 pick. Of course, during the draft, Cleveland traded down to No. 15 where they selected Baylor’s Corey Coleman. In today’s mailbag, Mary Kay Cabot of The Plain Dealer wonders aloud if the team could have been targeting Oregon pass-rusher DeForest Buckner, who went to San Francisco at No. 7. Some have wondered if Ezekiel Elliott could have been Cleveland’s target, but that’s not likely considering all of the positive things coach Hue Jackson has said about the team’s current stable of running backs.
- Last week ex-Browns quarterback Johnny Manziel appeared in the news again as he was booked in his domestic violence case.
Browns Agree To Terms With 11 UDFAs
No NFL team had a larger 2016 draft class than the Browns, who selected 14 players in seven rounds last weekend. Now, Cleveland has added 11 more rookies, announcing today in a press release that they’ve agreed to terms with 11 undrafted free agents. Here’s the full list of new additions for the Browns, which includes four defensive backs:
- LB Dominique Alexander (Oklahoma)
- K Brad Craddock (Maryland)
- DB Kenya Dennis (Missouri)
- DB Mikell Everette (Sam Houston State)
- TE J.P. Holtz (Pittsburgh)
- DB Tracy Howard (Miami) ($9K bonus, per Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle)
- DL Nile Lawrence-Stample (Florida State)
- OL Mike Matthews (Texas A&M) ($10K guarantee, per Aaron Wilson)
- DL Kyle Rose (West Virginia)
- FB Patrick Skov (Georgia Tech)
- DB A.J. Stamps (Kentucky)
Latest On Johnny Manziel
THURSDAY, 9:35am: Manziel’s bond has been set with two conditions, according to Ari Melber of MSNBC (on Twitter). He is prohibited from having contact from his accuser and he is not allowed to be in possession of firearms at this time.
WEDNESDAY, 5:34pm: Johnny Manziel has been booked in Texas and he has posted bond in his domestic violence case, as The Associated Press reports. The former Browns quarterback is set to face a Dallas judge on Thursday morning. 
Manziel, 23, was indicted by a grand jury in March following allegations that he struck his ex-girlfriend and threatened to kill her during a night out in January. If convicted of this Class A misdemeanor, the Texas A&M product could face up to a year in jail and a $4K fine. Late last month, Manziel’s attorney indicated that he will not seek any sort of leniency based on his client’s celebrity status.
“Judge, set the bond at whatever you think is right,” attorney Bob Hinton said he plans to say. “We will produce Johnny and we will pay the bond. We are not asking for any special treatment.”
The Browns cut the former Texas A&M star in March and two agents have dropped Manziel as a client in 2016. Since the Browns drafted the former Texas A&M star in the 2014 first round, Manziel appeared in 15 games, made eight starts, and tossed seven touchdowns and seven picks. Manziel showed progress in parts of his six starts last season, but his off-field issues overshadowed his positive steps on the gridiron. Those troubles carried into the offseason, leaving Manziel without a job and with an unclear future in professional football.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Browns Release Scott Solomon
- The Browns released linebacker Scott Solomon, as Adam Caplan of ESPN.com tweets. Solomon was a restricted free agent this offseason, one that Cleveland re-signed less than a month ago. Solomon was slated to earn $1.671MM in 2016.
Browns Decline Option On Barkevious Mingo
The Browns will not pick up the fifth-year option on linebacker Barkevious Mingo, a source tells Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). Mingo is now entering his contract year in Cleveland. 
Mingo, an LSU product, was taken with the No. 6 overall pick in the 2013 draft. That draft, of course, was guided by the Browns’ old regime spearheaded by former GM Michael Lombardi and assistant GM Ray Farmer. The new decision-makers would like to see more from Mingo before potentially committing to him for 2017 and beyond.
Mingo, 26 in October, has appeared in 46 games for the Browns across the last three years but started only 16 games. Last season was Mingo’s least impactful campaign to date as he notched only 18 total tackles. This year, Mingo will try to silence critics who have justifiably labeled him as a draft bust.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Cowboys Made Offer To Browns For 100th Overall Pick
- After missing out on Lynch, the Cowboys also made an effort to move up for Connor Cook in round four — the team offered its sixth-round pick to the Browns, along with No. 101, for No. 100, but Cleveland chose Oakland’s offer instead, and Dallas ultimately drafted Dak Prescott instead of Lynch or Cook.
North Notes: Kessler, Browns, Harrison, Bears
The Browns reportedly did not promise a starting job to Robert Griffin III, and it sound as though rookie third-round pick Cody Kessler has a shot to win the quarterback job in Cleveland. “We truly believe in competition here,” Browns executive Sashi Brown said, according to Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com. “We’re realistic about where our roster is at that slot and we want to find a long-term answer. I think it’s as critical for everything we’re going to do here.”
Here’s the latest from the North divisions…
- The Browns did not know cornerback Jamar Taylor would be available ahead of the draft, said Brown, according to Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal (Twitter link). Cleveland acquired Taylor today for a seventh-round pick.
- Even if the Bears had drafted a quarterback today, they still would have signed backup quarterback Brian Hoyer, GM Ryan Pace told reporters, including Adam Jahns of the Chicago Sun Times (Twitter link). Chicago wanted a veteran behind Jay Cutler, hence the signing of Hoyer to a one-year, $2MM deal.
- Steelers GM Kevin Colbert and head coach Mike Tomlin both expect James Harrison to return for the 2016, per Ed Bouchette of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazetter (Twitter links). “He’s working out awful hard for a ‘retired’ guy,” said Tomlin.
- Defensive tackle Vernon Butler contends the Lions told him they would draft him if he were available with the No. 16 pick, but Detroit ultimately chose offensive tackle Taylor Decker. Lions GM Bob Quinn denies that his club promised anything to Butler, who was chosen at No. 30 by the Panthers. Justin Rogers of MLive.com has the full details.
Dolphins Trade Jamar Taylor To Browns
Entering his contract year, Jamar Taylor will have to attempt to book his second contract in another city. The Dolphins traded the fourth-year cornerback to the Browns for a seventh-round pick in this year’s waning draft, NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport reports (on Twitter).
The Browns also sent their seventh-rounder to the Dolphins in the deal. As a result of the exchange, the Fins move up 27 spots in the seventh round to No. 223, Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald tweets. Miami still has pick No. 231 in the seventh.
Taylor did not enjoy a remarkable tenure in Miami, starting nine games in three seasons. His most extensive work came in 2015, when he started six games. Pro Football Focus did not view his work as particularly productive, assigning its fourth-worst grade among regular corners to the now-25-year-old Taylor.
A second-round pick out of Boise State, Taylor plummeted from No. 2 corner in Miami to start 2015 to being a healthy scratch in four of the Fins’ final five contests. The Fins have now moved on from each of their primary 2015 starters, with Brent Grimes signing with the Buccaneers and Brice McCain joining the Titans. Miami traded for embattled Eagles corner Byron Maxwell and traded Baylor’s Xavien Howard in the second round to help a rebuilding effort here.
Taylor will venture to Cleveland, where the cornerbacks haven’t drawn rave reviews much lately either — although that sentence can apply to most of the Browns’ position groups. With former No. 6 overall pick Justin Gilbert failing to see much time and Joe Haden regressing in 2015, the Browns also have Tramon Williams and Pierre Desir as auxiliary investments but could use some depth. Taylor made 48 tackles in his fourth season