The Browns are running out of tight ends, and the timing couldn’t be uglier.
What started as a questionable call to move on from David Njoku is now looking like a full-blown roster problem. Cleveland let Njoku test free agency ahead of his 10th season with the team, a move that made some sense on paper with Harold Fannin Jr. emerging and the organization clearly embracing a youth movement.
But the real issue was never just losing Njoku. It was failing to put anything stable in place behind him.
Now the Browns are less than a month from the regular season opener, and the position is in rough shape. Fifth-round rookie Joe Royer is away from the team because of a personal matter.
Veteran Brenden Bates was waived with an injury designation last week and reverted to the Browns’ season-ending injured reserve list. Cleveland then turned to rookie Dae'Quan Wright, though he hasn’t practiced as part of a pool of players who could soon be eligible to return to college football in 2026.
Thursday brought another hit: the Browns placed Jack Stoll on IR. Stoll had been arguably their top inline option as a blocker. To fill the roster spot, Cleveland signed rookie Drew Biber of the Minnesota Golden Gophers.
That leaves the Browns with a thin, shaky group. Fannin, special teams ace Blake Whiteheart, and seventh-round rookie Carsen Ryan now look like the clear top three. After that, there’s not much to feel good about.
That’s what makes the Njoku decision look even harder to defend. Andrew Berry’s choice not to extend him this offseason was understandable in the broader context, but the failure to replace his role has left the front office scrambling.
There were warning signs along the way. Njoku was a name to watch at last year’s trade deadline, though ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported the Browns were not inclined to move him. He finished out the final stretch of his contract mostly on the bench because of a knee issue, and his deal expired at the start of the 2026 league year with a $9.5 million dead-cap parting gift.
At the time, few questioned the decision. Njoku was entering his 30s, and Fannin had become the center of Cleveland’s passing game.
But the Browns had chances to strengthen the room and missed on them. After hiring Todd Monken as head coach, Berry could have looked to one of Monken’s former Baltimore Ravens tight ends, Isaiah Likely or Charlie Kolar, in free agency.
Kolar, in particular, would have fit cleanly next to Fannin because of his blocking and cheaper market value.
Instead, Cleveland missed on both and settled for Stoll, who offered some blocking upside but was never a sure thing to stick on the roster this summer.
The draft didn’t solve anything, either. Berry misread an early run on tight ends and ended up taking Royer in the fifth round and Ryan in the seventh.
Royer showed some promising pass-catching ability during Monken’s spring program, but he was still a risky bet as Fannin’s potential running mate. He was the 15th tight end selected in 2026.
Royer’s absence is about much more than football, but the Browns’ roster construction left them exposed the moment the depth chart started to crack. Cleveland has already made a string of moves just to keep healthy bodies at the position through training camp, and now the pressure is on Berry to find help fast.
Whether that means committing unplanned 2026 money to a veteran like Zach Ertz or Will Dissly, or making a trade for Los Angeles Rams tight end Colby Parkinson, the Browns may have to swing hard before the season gets here.
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