Jaleel McLaughlin may not have been on the Browns’ practice squad call-up list before Sunday’s opener, but that could change fast after Cleveland took a hit in the backfield.
Dylan Sampson was ruled out in the first half against the Jacksonville Jaguars with a knee injury, and that immediately makes McLaughlin’s addition look like one of the smarter moves Cleveland made after roster cuts. Sampson had been lined up for a meaningful role as the change-of-pace option behind starter Quinshon Judkins, so his absence opens the door for another back to step into that job.
Raheim Sanders was active Sunday as the Browns’ third running back, but McLaughlin’s game fits the vacancy as well as anyone on the roster. At 5-foot-7 and 187 pounds, he’s not built for a heavy weekly workload, which is part of why he went undrafted out of Youngstown State. But in the right spot, he can add real pop to an offense.
That’s exactly what Cleveland may need now.
McLaughlin spent three seasons in Denver after making the Broncos’ 53-man roster as a rookie in 2023, and he averaged 4.8 yards per carry on 226 rushing attempts. He’s the kind of back who keeps drives alive by making defenders miss and squeezing extra yards out of broken plays. In 2025, he forced 12 missed tackles on only 37 carries and broke tackles at a 21.6-percent clip.
There’s a case to be made that McLaughlin is already the Browns’ third-best running back behind Judkins and Sampson. Still, if Judkins were to miss time, Cleveland would need Sanders’ size and more physical style to handle that kind of load.
Losing Sampson would sting because of the burst he was expected to bring, but if the knee issue keeps him out, the Browns already have a ready-made answer sitting in the building.
McLaughlin’s path out of Denver was tied more to numbers than talent. The Broncos have kept reshaping their backfield, using a second-round pick on RJ Harvey in 2025 and then selecting Jonah Coleman in the fourth round this year. Sayre Bedinger of Predominantly Orange noted that McLaughlin's departure was more about circumstances than ability.
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