Dawgs By Nature
Smith was traded on Tuesday so the team could look to it’s practice squad for pass-rush help
The Cleveland Browns head into the BYE week with only three true defensive ends on the active roster in Myles Garrett, Ogbo Okoronkwo, and Isaiah McGuire following Smith’s trade.
They’re going to need some help when it comes to depth for the rest of the season and they could look to the practice squad first, especially now that they’re looking to evaluate everyone that they possibly can.
Let’s take a look at Cleveland’s in-house practice squad options at defensive end:
Kamara has been on the team for a while now bouncing between the practice squad and active roster since 2022.
The Browns value his inside/outside versatility in terms of being able to play DT or DE due to his strength and skill set. He’s played in five games this season and has five total tackles, three of those being solo.
Based on his playing time, he’ll most likely be promoted to the active roster quite a bit over the second half of the season. He might even be a permanent fixture if he can string together some good performances.
Smith was drafted by the New York Giants in the 4th round of the 2021 NFL Draft but was plagued by nagging injuries that ultimately led to his release in the summer of 2023 after playing in just 13 games for the team.
He then spent time with the New York Jets and Las Vegas Raiders over the next ten months before being released by the Raiders and signed to Cleveland’s practice squad in September.
Unfortunately, injuries have derailed his time in the NFL so far following a dominant career at the FCS level at the University of Northern Iowa.
If he can manage to stay healthy, the 6’7”, 250-pound defensive end could be one to watch going forward for the Browns. It’ll be interesting to see how often or if he gets promoted to the active roster going forward. Despite his athletic profile, he probably doesn’t have a long-term future in Cleveland due to being 26 years old already in just his third NFL season.
Haynes has been an NFL journeyman so far, having spent time with four different teams in his short 19-month career.
He’s more of a speed rusher who lacks every-down playability due to his lack of overall strength and anchor.
He might be someone that the team promotes closer to the end of the season to play in situational spots and on special teams, but his role past that is probably non-existent at the NFL level.
Which of these three players are you most interested in seeing on the field? Join fellow Browns fans in the comment section below.
