Players down the depth chart made their final cases for making the Cleveland Browns 53-man roster. After a month of training camp and three preseason games, here's how the 2026 roster may look come cut-down day.
Decision Day is coming. Andrew Berry and Todd Monken will spend the next couple days putting their heads together to finalize the Cleveland Browns 2026 roster.
By 6 p.m. on Sunday, all 32 teams must have their rosters trimmed to 53 players ahead of the regular season. It's important to remember that the initial 53-man roster isn't always the final 53-man roster, as a wave of waivers always leaves room for further tweaks.
It's a fluid situation. But here's a best guess of what the initial version of Cleveland's roster will be in the coming days.
Quarterbacks (4): Deshaun Watson, Shedeur Sanders, Dillon Gabriel. Taylen Green
It's certainly unconventional, and by the time Week 1 rolls around, Berry will have to settle on three guys. But it wouldn't be the first time he kept four quarterbacks initially and bought himself some extra time to potentially trade one.
Monken said nothing that Gabriel or Green did against New England will impact Watson and Sanders status as QB1 and QB2. The Browns brass may ultimately have to figure out if there are any potential suitors for Gabriel or if they can expose one of Gabriel or Green to waivers and get them back on the practice squad. We'll see. For now, everyone stays.
Running Backs/Full Backs (4): Quinshon Judkins, Dylan Sampson, Raheim Sanders, Michael Burton
Nothing changes from the pre-training camp prediction. Judkins and Sampson are obvious. Sanders cemented himself as RB3 on Thursday night. And Burton has missed a ton of time during camp due to injury, but returned to practice this past week and Monken loves him some fullbacks.
Tight Ends (3): Harold Fannin Jr., Blake Whiteheart, Carsen Ryan
This group may be the hardest to predict on the entire roster. Fannin Jr. is obvious, but behind him, it's impossible to know who will stay and who will go. Whiteheart had a steady camp. Ryan is one of two TE draft picks in this year's class and is pretty versatile. The other is Joe Royer, who hasn't even made an appearance at the team facility due to personal reasons.
Monken admitted this group is likely to look much different than it has throughout camp, so expect changes after the initial cut-down.
Wide Receivers (6): Jerry Jeudy, KC Concepcion, Denzel Boston, Isaiah Bond, Tylan Wallace, Luke Floriea
What a difference a year makes. Last year, this was arguably the Browns weakest position group. This year, it may be the deepest on the entire roster. The first five guys are virtual locks. Floriea gets the nod as WR6 because, well, he earned it. If it's not Floriea, keep an eye on Malachi Corley.
Offensive Line (10): Spencer Fano, Tytus Howard, Elgton Jenkins, Zion Johnson, Parker Brailsford, Teven Jenkins, Dawand Jones, Austin Barber, KT Leveston, Zak Zinter
The first five names listed make up the Browns' starting o-line, which really settled itself over the last week. After that, Jones is the team's swing tackle. The rookies, Barber and Brailsford are part of their plans. Leveston showed off his versatility this summer at guard and tackle. Zinter survives as one of the next guards up.
Defensive Line (9): Jared Verse, Maliek Collins, Mason Graham, Isaiah McGuire, Derek Barnett, Kalia Davis, Adin Huntington, Mike Hall Jr., Khordae Sudnor
Unfortunately, Alex Wright suffered a season-ending injury and there's still room to add to the d-line (Berry's been trying all camp). This group seems pretty straightforward right now, though. Kalia Davis is maybe the most uncertain given how much camp he's missed due to injury.
Linebackers (5): Carson Schwesinger, Quincy Williams, Justin Jefferson, Easton Mascarenas-Arnold, Winston Reid
There were questions about the guys in line after Schwesinger and Williams, but Mascarenas-Arnold and Reid have each had a great camp and preseason. Jefferson is a fifth-round pick who had a solid showing in Thursday's preseason finale.
Cornerbacks (5): Denzel Ward, Tyson Campbell, Myles Harden, Mekhi Blackmon, Michael Coats Jr.
Ward and Campbell were always locks. Harden entered camp as a bit of a question mark in the slot, but had a great camp. So did Coats Jr., who suffered a scary ankle injury at practice this week. Fortunately, Monken revealed postgame he doesn't expect it to be a long-term thing. Meanwhile, hours before kicking off the third preseason game, Cleveland signed Mekhi Blackmon from Indianapolis. This group is subject to change.
Safeties (4): Grant Delpit, Ronnie Hickman, Emmanuel McNeil-Warren, Donovan McMillon
The first three are obvious. There are a few names to weigh as a fourth safety, but McMillon had a strong summer, so he gets the nod. Depending on what happens elsewhere, Chris Edmonds may be the next man up if the Browns opt to keep five.
Specialists (3): Andre Szmyt, Corey Bojorquez, Rex Sunahara
Nik Consantinou or Wes Pahl were really booming the ball at practice, but Byron Storer continually said it was Bojorquez's job to lose and it doesn't seem like he did anything to lose it.
