The Cleveland Browns are making some notable roster adjustments ahead of their Week 16 matchup against the Buffalo Bills - and one move in particular may be signaling the end of a veteran’s run in Cleveland.
Let’s start with the additions. The Browns have promoted safety Christopher Edmonds from the practice squad to the active roster.
Edmonds, a 6-foot-2, 210-pound safety, originally joined the team as an undrafted free agent in 2024. While he hasn’t seen much action on defense, he’s carved out a role on special teams, logging 128 snaps across eight games over the past two seasons.
Sunday could give him another opportunity to make his mark in what’s expected to be a physical game against Buffalo.
But the bigger concern for Cleveland lies in the trenches. Defensive tackle Michael Hall Jr. was added to the injury report and is now questionable with an illness.
That’s a tough blow for a Browns defensive line already missing Maliek Collins, who’s on injured reserve. To help patch the interior, the team elevated two defensive tackles from the practice squad: Keith Cooper Jr. and Maurice Hurst II.
Cooper is a fresh face to Browns fans. At 6-foot-5 and 280 pounds, he signed with the Detroit Lions earlier this year as an undrafted free agent and spent time on their practice squad, though he didn’t see game action. Cleveland scooped him up on December 9, and now he could be in line for his first NFL snaps.
Hurst, on the other hand, is a familiar presence. He rejoined the Browns on December 10 and brings some real experience to the table.
At 6-foot-2 and 290 pounds, Hurst played 21 games for Cleveland across the 2023 and 2024 seasons, contributing two sacks, a fumble recovery, an interception, and 38 total tackles - eight of those for a loss. He didn’t sign with a team after last season, so if he suits up against Buffalo, it’ll be his first game action of 2025.
Now to the headline move: the Browns have placed right tackle Jack Conklin on injured reserve as he continues to deal with a concussion - his second of the season. This latest setback adds to an already injury-riddled year for the veteran lineman.
Conklin’s 2025 campaign has been marred by a string of ailments. He injured his elbow on the very first series of the season, then suffered concussions in Week 6 against the Steelers and Week 13 against the 49ers.
In between, he also dealt with a knee injury in Week 11 against the Ravens. It’s been a tough stretch for the 29-year-old, who’s set to hit free agency at the end of the season.
When the Browns signed Conklin back in 2020, he immediately delivered with a stellar season, starting 15 games and earning his second First Team All-Pro nod. But since then, it’s been a frustrating run of injuries. He played just seven games in 2021, missed nearly all of 2023, and has been limited to eight games this year.
With Conklin sidelined again, Cleveland will need to dig deep into its offensive line depth as it heads into a critical late-season matchup. The Browns are still in the thick of the playoff race, and every roster decision from here on out carries weight. Whether it’s a young safety stepping up on special teams, a veteran defensive tackle returning to the fold, or the offensive line adjusting without a key piece, these are the kinds of moves that can quietly shape the outcome of a season.