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Pierre Strong

Minor NFL Transactions: 11/22/25

November 22nd, 2025 at 6:43pm CST by Ely Allen

Here are Week 12’s minor moves and standard gameday practice squad elevations for the Sunday slate tomorrow:

Arizona Cardinals

Baltimore Ravens

Cincinnati Bengals

Cleveland Browns

Green Bay Packers

Kansas City Chiefs

Los Angeles Rams

New England Patriots

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

New York Jets

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tennessee Titans

There hasn’t been much of an update since it was reported that rookie quarterback Dillon Gabriel was going through the league’s concussion protocol. He was able to get some limited practice time in yesterday, but he hasn’t yet been cleared. With Gabriel’s status up in the air, Zappe is getting called up in case he’s needed to back up the new starting rookie, Shedeur Sanders.

O’Connell and Sheriff are getting called up with linebackers Tyrice Knight out with a concussion and Ernest Jones questionable with a knee injury. This will be O’Connell’s third and final practice squad elevation, so if the Seahawks wants to see him play again this year, they will need to sign him to the active roster.

Minor NFL Transactions: 10/18/25

October 18th, 2025 at 7:57pm CST by Ely Allen

Here are today’s minor moves and practice squad elevations as we head to the seventh Sunday of the regular season:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Chicago Bears

Green Bay Packers

Jacksonville Jaguars

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Rams

Miami Dolphins

New England Patriots

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

New York Jets

Philadelphia Eagles

San Francisco 49ers

Tennessee Titans

As injured reserve activations start to dominate the headlines, a couple teams are making minor additions off their injured lists. In Homer, the Bears are getting a veteran special teamer and some running back depth. Monk adds depth to Green Bay’s offensive line. And Weston will do the same for a linebacking corps in New York that has seen rookie fifth-round pick Francisco Mauigoa starting in place of an injured Quincy Williams.

Ford in Chicago, Sewell in New Orleans, and Jacobs in Tennessee are all being called up as standard gameday practice squad elevations for the third time this year. In order to appear in any more games after this weekend, their respective teams will need to sign them to the 53-man roster.

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 9/8/25

September 8th, 2025 at 6:36pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s practice squad moves:

Carolina Panthers

Green Bay Packers

Indianapolis Colts

New York Giants

New York Jets

  • Signed: OL Liam Fornadel

Philadelphia Eagles

Pittsburgh Steelers

Minor NFL Transactions: 9/2/25

September 2nd, 2025 at 7:55pm CST by Ely Allen

Here are today’s minor moves as we inch a day closer to the start of the regular season:

Carolina Panthers

Chicago Bears

Cleveland Browns

New Orleans Saints

San Francisco 49ers

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

  • Waived (with injury settlement): CB JayVian Farr, CB Roman Parodie

The 49ers are doing a bit of shuffling in their receiving corps, calling up Valdes-Scantling from the practice squad and cutting Gage. According to multiple sources, it’s believed that Gage will be immediately signed back to the team’s practice squad to remain with the team.

Haener was brought back to the active roster in New Orleans after being waived at the roster cut deadline. The Saints had three quarterbacks, with Iowa Western rookie practice squad passer Hunter Dekkers, but adding Haener gives the team a bit more experienced depth, if only barely, in what may be the league’s youngest quarterbacks room.

Deshaun Watson, Dustin Hopkins Not On Browns’ Initial 53-Man Roster

August 26th, 2025 at 2:34pm CST by Sam Robinson

The roster-cutdown deadline is less than an hour away, but some teams have turned in their test answers early. Here are the Browns’ moves to pare their roster to 53 players:

Released:

Waived:

Waived/injured:

Activated from active/PUP list:

Placed on IR-designated for return:

Placed on reserve/PUP list:

Placed on reserve/NFI list:

This is effectively a procedural move involving Watson, who has long been expected to be sidelined throughout the 2025 season due to two Achilles surgeries. The long-embattled quarterback had resumed throwing early this offseason, but he will not be activated. Long hovering off the Browns’ QB radar — as they conducted a rare four-man competition, one that has since lost Kenny Pickett (via trade) — Watson is not expected to play for the Browns again. Though, the team (via another restructure) still has the high-priced passer tied to a $35.97MM cap number.

 

Watson and Bell must miss at least four games apiece, while Hall will avoid such a delay. The 2024 second-round pick suffered a season-ending knee injury in December, and while he did not participate in training camp, this activation signals the Browns expect the Ohio State product to be ready at some point in the first four weeks.

 

A UDFA who started three games as a rookie last season, Reid will count toward Cleveland’s eight in-season injury activations. The Browns stashing the off-ball linebacker on the IR-return list will cut that total down to seven, whether Reid is activated this season or not. Placing Reid on IR now certainly points to activation plans, however.

 

Many of these players will likely be brought back on practice squad deals, as 16 of those spots are open to non-international players annually. Davis, a rookie UDFA, will be added to the Browns’ P-squad if he clears waivers, cleveland.com’s Mary Kay Cabot notes.

 

Hopkins, 34, has been the Browns’ kicker for the past two seasons. The team extended him on a three-year, $15.9MM deal in 2024, but the Browns are going with former UDFA Andre Szmyt at kicker. Szmyt kicked a 37-yard game-winning field goal to beat the Rams during the Browns’ preseason slate, making all three of his field goal tries.

 

Cutting Hopkins — who was just 18-for-27 last season — will bring a $4.91MM dead money charge (spread over two years) for the Browns. A former Syracuse kicker, Szmyt signed with the Browns in June; he has not attempted a regular-season kick yet. Hopkins’ slump led to the Browns making him a healthy scratch in Week 15, and while he returned to duty a week later, Cleveland has found a replacement.

Latest On Browns’ RB Depth Chart

June 21st, 2025 at 1:58pm CST by Ely Allen

After finishing 29th in the NFL last year in rushing yards, the Browns made a concerted effort this offseason to getting younger in their running backs room. In fact, Cleveland doubled down in the draft, using two of their seven picks on the position, becoming the first team in NFL history to draft two running backs and two quarterbacks in the first five rounds of any draft in the Common Draft Era.

Last year’s group was abysmal. Third-year back Jerome Ford led the team with 565 yards and three touchdowns in 14 games, six of which were starts. The phenomenal receiving contributions he showed in 2023 (44 catches for 319 yards and five touchdowns) effectively disappeared as he shouldered the main responsibility of being the primary rusher.

An aging Nick Chubb, 29, struggled in his return from a brutal knee injury. In eight starts through the middle of the season, Chubb failed to reach 60 rushing yards in any one game and scored in just two. His 3.3 yards per carry were the worst of his career; in contrast, before last year, he had never had a season with fewer than 5.0 yards per rush in his career. The third leading rusher was D’Onta Foreman. Also 29, Foreman’s 232 yards, zero touchdowns, and 3.3 yards per carry were among the worst numbers of his career.

Ditching the two 29-year-olds, the Browns only return Ford and Pierre Strong from last year’s diverse crop. Strong, 26, is the old man of the group, but his best season (2023) only saw 63 carries for 291 yards and a touchdown. Now Ford and Strong will be joined with a much younger duo as Cleveland welcomes second-round Ohio State rookie Quinshon Judkins, 21, and fourth-round Tennessee rookie Dylan Sampson, 20. Both Judkins and Sampson were higher draft picks in their respective draft than Ford (a fifth-round pick) and Strong (also a fourth-round pick, but 127th overall while Sampson was No. 126).

Judkins doesn’t add too much versatility in size to the room. Ford and Pierre both hover around 5-foot-10 or -11 and around 210-215 pounds, while Judkins adds a bit more size at just over 5-foot-11 and 221 pounds. Sampson brings a bit more diversity as a smaller 5-foot-8, 200-pound back.

In terms of production, Judkins brings consistency, never recording fewer than 1,000 rushing yards and 14 touchdowns in his three years at Ole Miss and Ohio State, despite only spending one season as a full-time starter. His best season came in his freshman year, though, when he recorded 1,567 yards and 16 touchdowns in just six starts (13 games). Sampson brings a flashy scoring ability after breaking out in his third year with the Volunteers. His 1,491 rushing yards in his only season as a full-time starter doesn’t quite match Judkins’ freshman campaign, but his 22 touchdowns beat any of Judkins three years.

In running style Judkins and Sampson seem like a perfect fit. Judkins runs with more of a decisive, one-cut style, attempting to get to his top speed by the time he hits the second-level defender. He’s not afraid of lowering the shoulder for contact with his strength and balance making him difficult to bring down. Sampson plays with a bit more quickness and agility, finding his desired angle and cutting with speed. He certainly fights for every yard, but rather than lowering the boom, he’s more effective when he’s using small cuts and shakes to avoid getting hit head on to eke out a couple more yards.

In a recent Q&A for TheLandOnDemand.com, ESPN’s Tony Grossi claimed that Judkins will be the planned starter moving forward with Sampson as the top backup. He points to Ford’s recent pay cut this offseason as evidence of a reduced role for the 25-year-old. Plus, his receiving abilities could become more useful in an RB3 role. While there is still plenty of time before the regular season for the depth chart to get shaken up, at the moment, it looks like youth will lead the way in the Browns’ rushing attack in 2025.

Minor NFL Transactions: 1/3/25

January 3rd, 2025 at 10:23pm CST by Nikhil Mehta

Here are today’s minor moves from around the NFL:

Carolina Panthers

Cleveland Browns

Green Bay Packers

New York Giants

Johnson sustained a concussion in a car accident earlier this week, per ESPN’s David Newton. The 2023 third-round pick will miss the Panthers’ final regular season after 14 appearances (including two starts) this year.

The Browns added three more players to injured reserve before Saturday’s matchup with the Ravens, including their leading rusher in Ford and second-leading pass-catcher in Njoku. Those absences have extended Baltimore to 19.5-point favorites as they look to lock up the AFC North. Cleveland will finish the year with 23 players on IR, including key players like Deshaun Watson and Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah.

Browns WR David Bell To Undergo Season-Ending Hip Surgery

September 17th, 2024 at 6:47pm CST by Adam La Rose

SEPTEMBER 17: As a result of the season-ending surgery for his dislocated hip, Bell has officially been placed on injured reserve, per Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2. His third NFL season has officially come to an end.

SEPTEMBER 16: David Bell suffered a dislocated hip in Week 2, and the third-year Browns wideout will miss the remainder of the campaign as a result. Head coach Kevin Stefanski said Bell is set to undergo season-ending surgery.

The 23-year-old was carted off the field during the third quarter of Cleveland’s win on Sunday. A notable absence was thus in the cards, but today’s news means Bell’s attention will turn to rehab ahead of the 2025 campaign. Already on the roster bubble for that year, as demonstrated by his time on and off the practice squad in 2024, this is a notable setback for him.

Selected in the third round of the 2022 draft, Bell logged a 47% snap share as a rookie. That playing time resulted in 35 targets, although he managed just 214 scoreless yards on 24 receptions that season. The Purdue product saw his usage take a significant step back last year, and handled only a rotational role. During his brief healthy period in the current campaign, he was only on the field for nine offensive snaps.

Nevertheless, the fact Bell is under contract through 2025 is a sign the Browns hope to keep him in the fold for at least the short-term future. For the time being, Cleveland will continue to rely on Amari Cooper, Jerry Jeudy, Elijah Moore and Cedric Tillman atop the WR depth chart. The Browns could look to make an addition aimed at filling Bell’s complementary role or remain inside the organization for such a move.

In other injury news, Stefanski said running back Pierre Strong is considered week to week due to a hamstring ailment. The team’s backfield will be shorthanded if he misses time, but Cleveland’s offense could see the return of any or all of left tackle Jedrick Wills, right tackle Jack Conklin and tight end David Njoku as early as Week 3. Their respective presences would be welcomed, but Bell will be out of the picture for the rest of the campaign.

RBs D’Onta Foreman, Pierre Strong On Browns’ Roster Bubble?

July 8th, 2024 at 10:30am CST by Adam La Rose

Attention related to the Browns’ backfield will continue to be directed toward Nick Chubb while his rehab from multiple knee surgeries continues. It is unclear when he will be back on the field, and as training camp approaches Cleveland will have a number of contenders for depth running back spots.

Jerome Ford – who took on starting duties after Chubb’s injury – is in line to reprise his RB1 workload until Chubb is back in the fold. The Browns also have Nyheim Hines in place as a pass-catching and returner option. After missing all of 2023 due to an ACL tear, Hines is hopeful to be on the field in time for the start of training camp. Cleveland has other backs on the roster, and their fates will be determined over the course of the summer.

Specifically, D’Onta Foreman and Pierre Strong could find themselves competing for one roster spot. Chris Easterling of the Akron Beacon Journal writes that Chubb’s health will be a key factor in determining how many running backs the Browns keep in the fold to begin the campaign. If the latter misses time in the fall, Foreman and Strong could survive roster cuts. If he is healthy by Week 1, however, keeping both in the fold (in addition to Ford and Hines) may not be feasible.

Strong was acquired via trade from the Patriots last summer, and he played sparingly on offense in Cleveland. The 2022 fourth-rounder logged a notable workload on special teams, though, and his third phase abilities could help him secure a spot. Foreman, on the other hand, has a longer track record of production in the backfield. The 28-year-old has played 52 games with four different teams, and his most productive campaign came in 2022 with the Panthers (914 rushing yards, five touchdowns).

Foreman signed a one-year deal worth the veteran’s minimum in March, and he is set to carry a cap hit of $1.15MM this season. That is slightly higher than Strong’s cap charge, and the latter is on the books through 2025. Releasing Foreman would create $818K in cap savings, although his track record could make him an attractive option to outside teams looking to add him via the waiver wire. Plenty is still to be determined separate from Chubb’s health, and Foreman and Strong’s showings this summer will be worth monitoring.

Browns “Pleased” With Current RB Group

October 5th, 2023 at 7:58pm CST by Ben Levine

The Browns have made a handful of moves to account for Nick Chubb‘s season-ending injury, but that hasn’t stopped the organization from being mentioned as a potential suitor for any RBs who have been or could be made available. When asked specifically if the Browns would consider making a move for disgruntled Colts star Jonathan Taylor, GM Andrew Berry hinted that he’s content with his current running back corps.

“Because of the tampering rules, I know I can’t touch on specific players,” Berry said yesterday (h/t Scott Petrak of The Chronicle-Telegram). “We’re always active seekers, participants in the trade market, but I would say we’re pleased with the running back room.”

Jerome Ford topped 100 yards while filling in for an injured Chubb in Week 2, but since he’s entered the starting lineup, he’s put up two lackluster performances. Between the two games, Ford has been limited to 96 yards from scrimmage on 26 touches, although he did find the end zone twice in Week 3.

The team re-signed Kareem Hunt once Chubb went down, and the veteran has garnered the second-most snaps at the position for Cleveland over the past two weeks. However, the veteran RB has also struggled with a 3.9-yards-per-touch mark. Of course, Hunt could also still be finding his groove after waiting until the regular season to sign a deal.

Third-stringer Pierre Strong has put up the best numbers of the bunch, with the second-year pro averaging 5.9 yards on his 13 touches. The former Patriots fourth-round pick has served as the clear RB3 behind Ford and Hunt, and his upside could be a reason why the Browns aren’t in any rush to add reinforcement at the position.

Besides signing Hunt, the Browns also added one of Taylor’s former teammates to the practice squad. Deon Jackson started Week 1 for the Colts but was limited to only 14 rushing yards on 13 attempts. The former UDFA looked serviceable in 2022, finishing with 445 yards from scrimmage and two touchdowns. For the time being, he’s sitting fourth in the pecking order in Cleveland.

As Berry indicated, the Browns wouldn’t shy away from a no-brainer trade, and plenty could change between now and the October 31 trade deadline. For the time being, it sounds like the Browns will be sticking with their current running backs grouping.

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