Cleveland Browns

Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb confirmed Thursday the Cleveland Browns plan to leave the city for neighboring Brook Park, Ohio.

"Last night, I had a meeting with Jimmy and Dee Haslam, principals of the Haslam Sports Group (HSG), in which they expressed their intent to relocate the Cleveland Browns to Brook Park," Bibb said in a statement.

In August, the Browns released renderings of the domed stadium they envision for the site in Brook Park:

Bibb said he and other local officials presented the Haslams with stadium plans that would've kept the Browns in Cleveland.

"We put forth a fiscally responsible yet aggressive financial package—larger than any other financial package offered for a sports facility in Cleveland to renovate the existing stadium," he said.

The city of Cleveland was also prepared to sign off on the construction of a new venue on a portion of Burke Lakefront Airport, which is just to the east of the site of the current stadium.

Despite Bibb's announcement, the Browns' relocation isn't a fait accompli.

The Chicago Bears explored a similar proposal when they laid out their vision for a new stadium in Arlington Heights, Illinois, going so far as to purchase the old Arlington Park race track for $197.2 million in February 2023. This March, the Bears backtracked and focused on building a new domed stadium along Chicago's lakefront.

When unveiling their Brook Park idea, the Browns set the total cost at $2.4 billion, and around $1.2 billion of that would be covered by private funding. That leaves municipalities with a sizable bill.

Officials in Cuyahoga County, of which Brook Park is a part, said in August they preferred keeping the Browns in Cleveland and wouldn't commit county money to the Brook Park venture. Ohio House Speaker Jason Stephens expressed his own reservations about putting state money toward the cause.

For state officials such as Stephens, there's also the fact the Cincinnati Bengals are looking to renovate Paycor Stadium. Were Ohio to commit public funds to the Browns, they'd pretty much have to do the same for the Bengals as well.

The Browns' current lease expires in 2028, so their exit from Cleveland isn't imminent even if everything goes according to plan. But there are still plenty of questions to be resolved before the Brook Park stadium becomes a reality.

Cleveland Browns running back Nick Chubb will play against the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday after being activated from the PUP list, but how many touches he receives is still up in the air.

Browns offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey said on Thursday that Chubb's workload is "still a work in progress," per ESPN's Daniel Oyefusi.

"We want to make sure that he's available for the long term," Dorsey told reporters.

Chubb last played in September 2023, when suffered a season-ending knee injury in Week 2 against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Browns running backs Jerome Ford and D'Onta Foreman are also injured, so Cleveland may give more carries to Pierre Strong Jr. if Chubb is limited.

Ford is currently week-to-week with a hamstring injury suffered during last Sunday's Week 6 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, according to head coach Kevin Stefanski.

Foreman has been limited in practice heading into Week 7 with a groin injury. He and Strong carried the majority of the workload against the Eagles after Ford left the game, combining for 18 carries and 74 yards.

Depending on Foreman's practice availability, he or Strong could be fantasy options to consider heading into Week 7.

Stefanski said on Wednesday that Chubb's workload would depend on his progress in practice throughout the week.

"I don't have a specific number right this minute but want to see Nick practice this week and then huddle up with Nick and with the coaches," Stefanski said on Wednesday, per team reporter Kelsey Russo.

The running back meanwhile told reporters on Wednesday that his knee feels "good."

Although the Browns are likely to show caution with Chubb's return to the field following two surgeries and 13 months away from the field, he remains a potential fantasy starter in large part due to Cleveland's limited offensive options.

Quarterback Deshaun Watson has completed 61.3 percent of his passes so far this season, while throwing five touchdowns and three picks, to lead what is currently ranked as one of the bottom four pass offenses in the NFL.

The Browns are meanwhile preparing to face the Bengals' defense, which has allowed 876 rushing yards through six games.

Given the Browns' passing struggles and the Bengals' defensive issues, Foreman and Chubb could both be fantasy options this week, depending on their respective practice availability. Should Foreman remain limited, managers could consider Strong as a choice for Week 7.

The Browns will likely hope to increase Chubb's touches going forward. As he continues to ramp up his workload, the four-time Pro Bowler could be a fantasy game-changer for Week 8 and beyond.

Loyalty is far from a guarantee in the NFL.

But Nick Chubb feels it from the Cleveland Browns.

The running back released a piece for The Players' Tribune on Wednesday and revealed what the only NFL team he has ever known told him and his agent as he was recovering from multiple knee surgeries.

"When my agent called me to tell me the news, he said, 'I've never actually had a front office tell me anything like this. But they said that part of the reason they never entertained cutting you is because of how much you mean to the city,'" Chubb wrote.

"That really meant the world to me. Look, I know the deal. I had no guaranteed money left. The Browns had all the leverage. They could've left me high and dry, like so many guys in this league. But they had my back. You all had my back."

Chubb suffered a significant knee injury during Week 2 of the 2023 season against the Pittsburgh Steelers. He underwent a surgery to repair the medial capsule, meniscus and MCL and then another one in November to repair the ACL.

That it was the same left knee he underwent reconstructive surgery for because of the torn MCL, PCL and LCL he suffered while at Georgia in 2015 made it all the more notable.

Cleveland ultimately reworked his deal this offseason, and ESPN's Jeremy Fowler noted the AFC North team reduced his salary cap hit from $15.85 million to $6.275 million while giving him the opportunity to earn up to $12.2 million in incentives in 2024.

But the organization didn't cut him and made sure he was still on the roster.

Now the running back who was a Pro Bowler in four straight seasons from 2019 through 2022 will look to return to the field and help a Browns team that is 1-5 and in need of a boost.

"That's enough talking for me," he wrote. "There's only one thing left to do now. I gotta pay ya back.

"These rocks ain't going to move themselves. Let's work."

The $92 million in guaranteed money remaining on Deshaun Watson's contract after 2024 is reportedly going to keep the quarterback with the Cleveland Browns despite his struggles early this season.

"My sense through all of this is the Browns are resigned to their fate, having no choice but to ride this out and hope things turn," Jeremy Fowler wrote for ESPN.

Fowler believes that the Browns could decide to "bench Watson," but likely only with the guarantee that he will get the ball back later this season.

According to Fowler, Browns owner Jimmy Haslam and general manager Andrew Berry "need to give Watson superfluous chances to rediscover even semblance of his old game, due to the contract."

Watson has thrown five touchdown passes and three picks through six games while leading the Browns to a 1-6 record. He is currently in the third season of the five-year, $230 million deal he signed with the team in 2022.

According to Fowler, the Browns "believe they aren't that far off" from winning games despite Watson's struggles, especially due to the anticipated return of running back Nick Chubb from a knee injury during Week 7 against the visiting Cincinnati Bengals.

But the Browns also decided to trade Watson's top target, wide receiver Amari Cooper, in a Tuesday trade with the Cleveland Browns.

The Browns traded Cooper and a 2025 sixth-rounder in exchange for a 2025 third-round pick and a 2026 seventh-round pick, showing that the team is focused on acquiring future draft capital rather than building around Watson.

And yet there are few good options for rebuilding around Watson's contract, which would cost the Browns $172 million in dead money against the 2025 cap should they cut him after this season, per Over the Cap, while even a trade would leave the team saddled with $81 million next season.

The Browns currently have eight picks heading into the 2025 draft, including five of their own plus three acquired in trades.

That haul includes a first-round pick for the first time in four seasons. The Browns spent three drafts on the outside of the first round looking in following their trade with the Houston Texans for Watson before the 2022 season.

Given that the Browns are one of six NFL teams with just one win on the books heading into Week 7, that first-round pick could be a high one. Even if Watson is set to remain on the roster for the next several seasons, Berry could consider drafting a quarterback with the pick in order to begin building a new team around his contract.

Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James is less than thrilled with the direction the Cleveland Browns appear to be taking after they traded wide receiver Amari Cooper to the Buffalo Bills on Tuesday.

In a reply to a user on X who suggested the Browns are packing it in, James said he's "SICK RIGHT NOW!":

It's hard not to see this as a sign Cleveland is shifting its priorities after expecting to be a playoff contender. Teams with playoff aspirations typically don't deal a veteran such as Cooper for draft compensation in the middle of the year. Even though the five-time Pro Bowler is performing well below his best, his departure makes the Browns worse.

This fanbase is certainly used to watching a lot of losing. The arc of this season is especially cruel, though, because Cleveland went from an 11-win playoff team to one that's 1-5 and counting on a franchise quarterback who might be broken beyond repair.

As an asset play, dealing Cooper makes sense. He's headed for free agency after the season and a 2025 third-round pick is a solid return under the circumstances.

But it's never great optics when a franchise goes from contending to rebuilding after six weeks. James surely isn't the only Northeast Ohio native who's beside himself.

If it has seemed like people within the Cleveland Browns organization are going out of their way to not say anything bad about Deshaun Watson amid his on-field struggles, there is a reason for that.

On the latest episode of the Scoop City podcast (starts at 22:10 mark), The Athletic's Mike Sando said "it's not real easy to be super critical" of Watson in the Browns' building.

Head coach Kevin Stefanski has been asked about Watson's status as the starting quarterback after each of the Browns' last two games.

"We're not changing quarterbacks," Stefanski told reporters on Oct. 6 following a 34-13 loss to the Washington Commanders. "We need to play better, I need to coach better. That's really what it is."

The question popped up again on this week after another ugly outing from Watson and the offense in a 20-16 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday.

"I think it's just important that we continue to do everything we can to play good, sound football," Stefanski said. "I think there were moments obviously of that yesterday. I think Deshaun gives us the best chance to win, continues to give us the best chance to win, and we need to play really good offensive football at his position and really at every position to be successful on Sunday."

Stefanski also denied that the decision to stick with Watson was being influenced by ownership or anyone in the front office, including general manager Andrew Berry.

Whatever reason Stefanski and the Browns have come up with publicly for why Watson will continue to start, it's hard not believe a lot of it is related to how much money he is being paid.

On a performance level, there is no justification for Watson to keep his job right now. He has thrown for 1,020 yards, five touchdowns, three interceptions and completed 61.3 percent of his attempts through six games.

Watson has been sacked 31 times, 11 more than any other quarterback this season. He ranks last out of 31 qualified quarterbacks with a 21.7 QBR.

The Browns are the first team since the 2014 Jacksonville Jaguars, who finished 3-13, who failed to score at least 20 points in each of their first six games.

Cleveland has lost five of its first six games, with its lone victory coming against the 1-5 Jaguars in Week 2. The Browns will play the Cincinnati Bengals, Baltimore Ravens and Los Angeles Chargers in the next three weeks before their bye in Week 10.

Despite another lackluster performance in a loss, Deshaun Watson is going to remain the starting quarterback for the Cleveland Browns.

Head coach Kevin Stefanski told reporters after Sunday's 20-16 defeat against the Philadelphia Eagles that the Browns, who are now 1-5 this season, will be sticking with Watson.

Cleveland's offense continued to struggle in the loss, as Field Yates and Daniel Oyefusi of ESPN noted postgame.

Watson actually had one of his better games of the season on Sunday, but that doesn't necessarily mean it was good. He finished 16-of-23 for 168 yards with no touchdowns and no interceptions.

If you simply go by completion percentage, Watson's 69.6 mark was his second-best of the season. His 7.3 yards per attempt was by far his best of the season, surpassing the 5.5 mark from Week 4 against the Las Vegas Raiders.

Cleveland's offensive line didn't do much to help Watson against the Eagles. He was sacked five times, despite having the fifth-fastest time to throw in Week 6 to this point (2.59 seconds).

In the big picture, though, Watson hasn't been doing anything to elevate the offense. He has yet to throw for 200 yards in a game and this was his second time in six weeks without a touchdown pass.

Making matters worse is the Browns don't really have an avenue to move on from Watson until after next season. His contract has a dead-cap charge of $172.8 million in 2025 and $99.8 million in 2026.

Per CBS Sports' Cody Benjamin, the earliest the Browns could realistically release Watson would be after the 2025 season when they would only be on the hook for a $72.9 million dead-cap charge if they designated him as a post-June 1 cut.

While there will continue to be questions about the passing game with Watson under center, there are offensive reinforcements on the way for the Browns.

Oyefusi reported on Saturday that Nick Chubb is expected to make his return in Week 7 against the Cincinnati Bengals. The star running back hasn't played since suffering a major knee injury in Week 2 of the 2023 season against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

The Browns play the Bengals, Baltimore Ravens and Los Angeles Chargers before their bye in Week 10.

Cleveland Browns star Nick Chubb is expected to return to the lineup next Sunday against the Cincinnati Bengals, according to Cleveland.com's Mary Kay Cabot.

Chubb has been sidelined since Week 2 of the 2023 season after suffering an injury against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

The sixth-year running back is expected to make his first appearance of the season in Week 7 at Huntington Bank Stadium.

Chubb has successfully undergone two left knee surgeries to repair his medial capsule, medial collateral ligament, anterior cruciate ligament and his meniscus according to ClevelandBrowns.com's Kelsey Russo.

Since his injury, the star running back has credited his teammates for their support during his extended time on the sidelines.

"The team did a great job of being there for me. I was down mentally for a while," Chubb told Russo. "Just when you get hurt, I mean it's one thing when you get hurt again and you already know what you got to go through and the entire process – surgery and rehab – it's a nonstop battle every day. So, my team did a great job just being there for me."

The 28-year-old out of Georgia averaged 89.7 rushing yards per game with 12 touchdowns during the 2022 season where he started in all 17 games for the Browns.

Before Chubb returns, the 1-4 Browns will face the 2-2 Philadelphia Eagles on the road this Sunday.

Amid ongoing speculation that he's a candidate to be traded this season, Cleveland Browns veteran receiver Amari Cooper is focused on helping his team overcome its early struggles.

Per Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com, Cooper said Thursday that he hasn't given thought to the ongoing trade rumors because "he's only focused on winning." The Browns have lost three straight games and have a 1-4 record entering Sunday's game against the Philadelphia Eagles.

The 30-year-old hasn't made much of an impact this year, recording 20 catches for 208 yards and two touchdowns. He was coming off an impressive 2023 campaign in which he posted a career-high 1,250 receiving yards.

Cooper is in the final year of his contract and has been rumored to be a trade candidate since the offseason when ESPN's Jeff Darlington reported that he could have been involved in a deal with the San Francisco 49ers for star receiver Brandon Aiyuk, who was holding out of training camp amid a contract dispute that eventually got resolved.

Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski said earlier this week that he was open to the possibility of giving play-calling duties to offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey if the team's issues persist. Cleveland ranks last in the NFL with an average of 239.4 yards of total offense.

If the Browns don't turn things around quickly, perhaps their best course would be to trade Cooper and other veterans to recoup assets and start building for the future.