Browns Holding Out Hope Veteran LB Returns After Visit With Commanders

Getty Quarterback Patrick Mahomes of the Kansas City Chiefs scrambles as middle linebacker Anthony Walker of the Cleveland Browns chases.

Veteran linebacker Anthony Walker Jr. completed a visit with the Washington Commanders but the Cleveland Browns are still hopeful he’ll return next season.

Cleveland’s interest in re-signing Walker comes via Mary Kay Cabot of cleveland.com.

“The Browns would like to re-sign Anthony Walker Jr. but they might have to let the market set his price first,” Cabot reported on March 21.

Walker is coming off a torn quad tendon, which resulted in him missing the final 14 games of the season. However, he was highly respected in the locker room and was productive in the middle of the defense for the Browns.

Walker walked away from his visit with the Commanders without a deal signed, although likely gave him a good assessment of his market value. He has played on a pair of one-year deals with the Browns, including a $4.25 million contract last season.

Walker Expressed Interest in Returning to Browns

Walker was having a strong start to the year when he went down with the quad injury. He posted an overall grade of 82.7 on Pro Football Focus and was elite in coverage. Walker was the Browns’ leading tackler in 2021, notching 113 tackles.

Walker said that he’d like to return to Cleveland next season but was also honest with himself about the business of the NFL.

“I love Cleveland,” he said. “I hate packing up and moving. That’s one of my pet peeves. But it’ll be exciting if I’m able to be back here.

“At the end of the day, it’s a business though. I understand that. When I was a younger guy, I probably didn’t understand that as much. I remember my coach, my rookie year (with the Colts), was like, ‘The team won’t look the same next year,’ and it was literally a whole different team. That’s what the NFL is.”

Browns Looking for Specific Players Under Jim Schwartz

The Browns have made some significant additions on the defensive side of the ball this offseason, including three starters in defensive tackle Dalvin Tomlinson, pass-rusher Ogbo Okoronkwo and safety Juan Thornhill.

The defense will look new under Jim Schwartz next season and the veteran coordinator knows what he’s looking for when it comes to players.

“There are certain skill sets we look for and a little bit of play style that maybe other people might not appreciate as much,” Schwartz told the Browns’ official site. “They might use the person a little bit differently, and something that’s sort of involved in that scheme is that we can get guys going pretty quickly.

“I think that if we all work together, we can find some productive players regardless of (if they’re in) the first round, or as a high-priced free agent or anything else.”

The Browns have re-signed one of their own at linebacker in Sione Takitaki. He had a breakout season last year, starting eight games and notching a career-high 71 tackles. Cleveland was ravaged by injury at the linebacker position, which led to some extra work for Takitaki. However, he suffered his own season-ending injury in December, going down with a torn ACL.