The Cleveland Browns moved on from Luke Floriea on Tuesday, Sept. 1, and it immediately looked like the kind of decision that could linger. The Mentor High School and Kent State product had become one of the more talked-about names in camp, and now he’s already drawing attention elsewhere.
Floriea’s preseason line was hard to ignore: six catches on 11 targets for 95 receiving yards and three touchdowns. For a local player trying to carve out a role, that kind of production made him easy for Browns fans to rally around.
That reaction was clear enough that it spilled into the conversation around the team’s decision-making. “Every Browns fan I talked to, they're like 'they're gonna be bad.
They're saddling us with Deshaun Watson...why not put somebody local and NE Ohio...why can't we have something to get excited about.'" ➡️ @SportsBoyTony and @KenCarman on #Browns fans' reaction to WR Luke Floriea… pic.twitter.com/mvL6qtgu8w
Head coach Todd Monken said the cut wasn’t simple. “On the one hand, I was happy that he was a part of our team for the short time that we had him," he said.
"All he did was work every single day, and then to have the opportunity to have a couple of touchdown catches in the stadium that he was fired up about. So that wasn’t an easy conversation, but it was awesome, just his outlook.
"He gave everything he had in the time he was here with us."
Now Floriea has a new opportunity in front of him. On Thursday, Sept. 3, it was announced that the 25-year-old would be heading to Seattle for a workout with the Seahawks this week.
That’s a logical place for a team to take a shot on a player like Floriea. The Seahawks are Super Bowl champions last year, and with little downside attached, they can look at a developmental receiver and see if there’s something worth keeping around.
Free agent WR Luke Floriea, a camp favorite in Cleveland, has a tryout with the Seahawks this week, per source.
At 5-foot-8, Floriea is undersized, but his speed and athleticism give him a real chance to stick. Seattle also just lost long-time wideout Cody White to the Las Vegas Raiders through waivers, and that opens another lane for depth help. White played over 200 combined snaps on offense and special teams last year for the Seahawks.
If Floriea doesn’t make the 53-man roster, the practice squad remains an option. Seattle already has three receivers there: Ricky White II, Emmanuel Henderson Jr. and Julian Hicks.
For Floriea, the next step is clear. As his development continues, he’ll need to keep building toward becoming a special teamer, even if that hasn’t been a major part of his game so far.
And if the Browns native does land on the other side of the country, it would sting for the fans who wanted to see his story continue in Cleveland. That disappointment would only grow if his career takes off somewhere else.
In Other News...
Browns May Have Found An Unexpected Offensive Line Answer
Zak Zinter went into roster cutdowns as one of the more vulnerable names on the Browns offensive line, but he came out with his spot intact and a real chance to matter this season. The interior lineman had shown enough progress through training camp and the preseason to turn heads, and head coach Todd Monken was among those who took notice as Cleveland sorted through its final decisions.
For a line group that always has to brace for attrition, Zinter now looks like more than just a body on the depth chart. His rise from possible waiver candidate to 53-man roster member gives the Browns another interior option, and the kind of unexpected development that can quietly reshape how a team feels about its protection once the games start counting. [Read more 🡒]
Browns May Have Fixed The One Problem Holding Back Their Offense
The Browns spent the offseason making the kind of wholesale offensive line changes teams usually make only after they have seen enough. Cleveland added Zion Johnson, Elgton Jenkins and Tytus Howard in free agency, brought back Teven Jenkins, and then used the draft on Spencer Fano, Austin Barber and Parker Brailsford to reshape a unit that had grown old and thin last season. It was a clear attempt to give the quarterback better protection and create more room in the run game, two areas that too often limited the offense.
Early camp reports suggest the overhaul is already paying off. The rookie linemen have reportedly held up well and helped give the Browns a stronger, deeper front than the one they fielded a year ago. Whether that translates once the games count is still the real question, but for a team searching for steadier offensive footing, the line is no longer being treated like an afterthought. [Read more 🡒]
Browns Final Roster Call Sparks A Risky Defense Debate
The Browns got to their 53-man roster with one of the more revealing decisions of the final cutdown window, keeping 34-year-old fullback Michael Burton even with his recent injury history in the background. Head coach Todd Monken said the move was part of the plan, pointing to Burtons experience and the role he plays in the offense, a reminder that Cleveland values familiarity and function when the roster gets tight.
The bigger question may sit on the other side of the ball, where the Browns cut cornerback Michael Coats Jr. and pushed other young defensive players to the practice squad. That leaves the defense looking thinner in spots than some around the team might like, and it adds a little extra weight to every remaining backup and special teams piece as Cleveland sorts out how much depth it really has. [Read more 🡒]